Examining social-demographic determinants of bike-sharing station capacity

Abstract

This study applied Negative Binomial models to examine the social-demographic determinants of bike-sharing station capacity. It used social-demographic data from Smart Location Database and over 7,000 bike-sharing stations located in the United States. Results revealed that the station's city, households with no cars, the percentage of workers aged 18–64, gas prices, the Caucasian population, gross residential density on unprotected land, intersection density, and low to medium-earning workers are associated with the increase in station capacity. Contrarily, station capacity decreased with vehicle miles traveled and the number of high-earning workers. Findings are crucial to planners and operators in improving bike-sharing operations.

Keywords

• Bike sharing systems
• Docking station capacity
• Random effects
• Negative binomial