Resilience and adaptability: The evolving roles of Bikeshare to public transport amid pandemic disruptions

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

2025

Subject Area

place - north america, place - urban, mode - bike, mode - bus, mode - subway/metro, planning - integration, planning - methods

Keywords

Resilience and adaptability, Multilevel interaction, Bikeshare systems, Public transportation, COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly disrupted urban transportation systems, revealing the necessity for resilient and adaptable mobility solutions. This study examines the evolving roles of bikeshare systems (BSS) relative to public transit (PT) at micro, meso, and macro levels across four major U.S. cities during different pandemic phases, by employing a multilevel analytical framework that incorporates advanced statistical and machine learning methods. Results indicate remarkable resilience and adaptability of BSS, with usage surpassing pre-pandemic levels and the post-restrictions, contrasting with notable declines and slow recovery of PT. The analysis identifies short-term synergistic effects, long-term seasonal fluctuations, and the influence of weather, government policies, and pandemic severity on BSS-PT relationships. While weather conditions and city-specific factors alone do not exhibit significant correlations, their interactive terms with other variables significantly impact BSS-PT dynamics. Key pandemic-related variables are illustrated as critical determinants, with the initial outbreak and lockdown phase and COVID-19 death tolls exhibiting a pronounced negative association with BSS-PT interactions. Conversely, COVID-19 case counts display a notably positive correlation. This research provides valuable insights into the adaptation of transit systems to future disruptions, fostering more resilient and integrated mobility networks.

Rights

Permission to publish the abstract has been given by Elsevier, copyright remains with them.

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