Electric Bikeshare Replacing Car Trips, Sacramento, CA, 2020

Researchers at the University of California-Davis explored the behavior of people using bikeshare programs as a way to replace car-rides for daily trips. The researchers focused on a bikeshare program in the Sacramento region that was recently discontinued named JUMP which were Uber affiliated dockless e-bikes. The study was conducted through surveys sent to residents in downtown Sacramento, West Sacramento and Davis within the bike-share service area and a control group in Sacramento that was outside the service area. The study’s findings showed that a substantial number of residents used the bike-share service, showing that people are at least willing to try the bikeshare service at least once with users typically about 10 years younger than non-users. Additionally, bikeshare use in the area seems to be replacing car travel and walking, with less reported vehicle miles traveled in West and Downtown Sacramento since the JUMP bike-share program was in service.

Attitudes towards bicycling also appear to be more positive since the pilot launched which is important as travel attitudes are strongly associated with travel behavior. Usage does not tend to be to connect to other transit services which is an unrealized potential for future consideration. The study also found that traditional methods of measuring bike-share user demographics from trip data may not be an accurate depiction of ridership which indicates better measurements of equitable access is to be explored. Lastly, contrary to media reports, residents who have not used e-bikes or e-scooter services mostly agree that they are used safely and responsibly.