Powering bikeshare in New York City: does the usage of e-bikes differ from regular bikes?

Abstract

In this study, we investigate the difference between shared electric bicycles (e-bikes) and conventional shared bikes operated by Citi Bike in New York City. We examine differences in usage by examining summary statistics and we develop conditional autoregressive models to examine differences in factors associated with trip generation. These factors include bike infrastructure, subway proximity, area demographics, land use, and elevation. We also control for border effects by identifying peripheral stations. The percentage of e-bike trips fluctuates across hours of the day, with a peak around 3 PM but diminishes during peak commuting hours. We find mostly no significant differences in factors associated with the generation of trips between the two modes. Exceptions include a larger effect on e-bike trip generation when the daytime worker population is larger; other differences are due to the racial composition around the station area, some land use categories, and elevation differentials.