Bike share and user motivation: exploring trip substitution choices among bike share users in a North American city

Bicycle share schemes have been implemented in scores of cities throughout the world over the last decade. Policy makers have embraced the technology of bike sharing to address a number of public policy problems, including congestion mitigation, improving air quality, and encouraging active mobility. While many of these systems have seen large numbers of users, understanding the motivations and perceptions of those using bike share systems is still relatively nascent. This study contributes to the evolving literature of bike share user motivation by using an intercept survey of bike share riders in a neighborhood of Chicago, USA where high levels of bike share usage have been prevalent. In particular this research explores the relationship between respondents’ motivations to use bike share and modal shift. We find that the odds of shifting from walking to bike share are predicted by a desire for convenience; the odds of shifting from automobiles to bike share are predicted by the desire for exercise and the cost savings of bike share; and the odds of shifting from train use to bike share are predicted by bike share cost savings. The findings from this research can help policymakers anticipate the impacts on modal shift from the perspective of the motivations of users