Abstract
Due to the non-reliance on fossil fuels, bike-sharing systems contain the potential to reduce emissions. As of December 2016, the global number of public-use bicycles surged to 2.3 million, increased 228% since December 2013, highlighting the critical role of bike-sharing in green transportation. However, the collapse of major bike-sharing companies in China raises concerns about the sustainability and true environmental impact of such systems. This research investigates whether bike-sharing systems effectively reduce carbon emissions in a sustainable manner. Utilizing quantitative approaches and data visualization techniques, we assess whether the emissions reduced by switching to bike-sharing systems are sufficient to offset the carbon emissions generated throughout the bikes’ life cycles. Our study focuses on the U.S. bike-sharing market, analyzing data from the seven largest bike-sharing cities, including New York City, Washington D.C., Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. By constructing a model based on existing studies of bike life cycle emissions, we determine that, on average, it takes approximately 7.8 months for a new shared bike to offset its entire carbon footprint. Notably, Citi Bike in New York achieves this balance in just five months, outperforming other systems. Despite variations across cities, the life cycle of a shared bike typically exceeds three years, indicating that the U.S. bike-sharing market is on a path of sustainable and eco-friendly development. This study underscores the importance of considering both economic and environmental factors in evaluating the effectiveness of shared transportation systems.
Presenters
Bingdi ChunyuSenior Data Scientist, Marketing, The Michael J Fox Foundation, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH, SHARED BIKE, GREEN TRANSPORTATION, CARBON EMISSION
