Exploring a System Dynamics Approach to Develop Shared-Mobility Services Models: A Literature Review

Abstract

Shared Mobility Services (SHMS) are business models (BMs) that act as sharing economy platforms commonly based on mobile applications. They are conceived in a complex landscape characterized by the presence of information and the widespread presence of smart devices. In this sense, decision-makers, system developers, maintainers, and providers try to understand the interrelationships within this framework in terms of policy evaluation and/or impact on its successful adoption, analysis of all aspects of SHMS that affect the environment such as understanding patterns, user behavior, and improving the quality of this BM. To do this, models are built to capture the complex dependencies and interactions of these variables to guide decision-making. In this context, System Dynamics (SD) emerges as a useful approach to manage and capture the complexity/causality relationships of SHMS variables. Based on this, it developed a literature review to verify which research has applied SD to explore SHMS, analyzing existing models, their methods, variables, and impacts, as well as directions for future research. From a practical point of view, it is hoped that this research can be used as a guideline for urban planners and SHMS providers.