Forum > Developing Inputs > How should one account for Bike Share Programs?
How should bike share programs (BSP) be incorporated into RPAT's bicycle related input variables? How does one account for the impact of BSP on bicycle ownership rates? What are some fair assumptions? Should one use national estimates if regional estimates of non-motorized ownership is not available?
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RPAT's non-motorized vehicle model predicts the ownership and use of non-motorized vehicles (where non-motorized vehicles are bicycles, and also electric bicycles, Segways and similar vehicles that are small, light-weight and can travel at bicycle speeds or slightly higher than bicycle speeds). The core concept of the model is that non-motorized vehicle usage will primarily be a substitute for short-distance single-occupant vehicle (SOV) travel. Therefore, the model estimates the proportion of the household vehicle travel that occurs in short-distance SOV tours. The model determines the maximum potential for household VMT to be diverted to non-motorized vehicles, which is also dependent on the availability of non-motorized vehicles.
Bicycle availability is represented by the TargetProp input which is the non-motorized vehicle ownership rate (average ratio of non-motorized vehicles to driver-age population).
A bike share program (BSP) would serve to increase the “TargetProp” variable value by increasing the number of households with bicycle availability.
Some specific recommendations:
-Use national estimates of non-motorized ownership if regional estimates of non-motorized ownership are not available (unless the region has notably atypical levels of bicycle usage). Seehttp://www.academia.edu/1839374/Bicycle_Ownership_in_the_United_States_Empirical_Analysis_of_Regional_Differences for an analysis of regional differences.
-Consider the size of the BSP in the context of the region being modeled and the number of trips expected relative to current bicycle trip making.
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