Effects of COVID-19 on Docked Bikeshare Trips

This paper explores the effect of COVID-19 on docked bikeshare trips in four periods: (1) in January and February 2020—the months prior to the declaration of a national emergency on March 1, 2020, (2) the days from the declaration of the national emergency up to the stay-at home order date in states issuing an order, (3) during the state issued stay-at-home period, and (4) from the beginning of phased reopening (in the states that issued stay-at-home orders) through the end of June. The authors examine docked bikeshare trips using the dates specific to the state or territory in which the system can be found. The authors additionally compare these four phases to local public transportation trips and overall travel behavior where available as a first step in exploring the effects of COVID-19 on mode choice and traditional travel patterns. For the 10 systems examined, docked bikeshare increased from January to February 2020 from 2019 levels (the period prior to COVID-19 responses), declined during statewide stay-at-home and shelter-in place periods, and began to increase during phased reopening. Docked bikeshare trips have not yet returned to 2019 levels, but data through June 2019 show a faster increase compared to the same period in 2019 and a faster increase during phased reopening than local public transportation trips. This may be an early indicator of a modal shift from public transportation to docked bikeshare for some trips and riders. Further research is needed to fully understand the effects of COVID-19 on mode choice and travel behavior.

• Record URL:
  https://annualmeeting.mytrb.org/OnlineProgram/Details/15919
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ACH20 Standing Committee on Bicycle Transportation.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  ,    
• Authors:
  • Firestine, Theresa
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 100th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2021-1-5 to 2021-1-29
• Date: 2021

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 20p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bicycle travel; Bicycles; Communicable diseases; COVID-19; Cyclists; Modal shift; Mode choice; Travel behavior; Vehicle sharing
• Subject Areas: Operations and Traffic Management; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01764288
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: TRBAM-21-00901
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Feb 4 2021 11:00AM