| Title | USER BASED RE-BALANCING FOR PUBLIC BICYCLE SYSTEMS： EFFECTS OF TEMPORAL DISTANCE ON WILLINGNESS-TO-ACCEPT |
| Author | Jyun-Kai Liang, Syu-Yu Wang, Chen-Yen Lin, Yi-Chen Huang, Chung-Cheng Lu |
| Summary | In general, system operators frequently relocate bikes at unbalanced stations to address the downgrade in service quality due to the spatial imbalance in demand for bike-sharing systems. However, past studies suggested a concept of user-based re-balancing approach that guides users to return bikes at nearby alternative stations by providing incentives, such as a discount on rental fees. This demand-oriented approach can mitigate the spatial imbalance between the supply and demand of public bicycles and reduce the operating costs for system operators on bike re-balancing. In order to understand users’ willingness to accept (WTA) on the discount incentive for returning bikes to nearby stations, we designed a questionnaire involving eight scenarios for YouBike users in Taipei City based on the contingent valuation method (CVM). The design of the scenarios includes three major factors: with or without time pressure, immediate or delayed discount payments, and extra walking or biking time. Linear regression and interval regression models are constructed based on the survey data to analyze the WTAs in the different scenarios. The analysis results indicate that most YouBike users will be willing to return bikes at recommended stations if they receive a discount on rental fees. However, there are no common significant factors in the eight scenarios for both models. Furthermore, users ask for a more significant discount if requiring extra walking for returning bikes at other stations, meaning that the time value of walking is higher than that of biking. Finally, the study findings provide references for a user-based re-balancing approach for public bicycle systems. |
| Vol. | 53 |
| No. | 2 |
| Page | 157 |
| Year | 2024 |
| Month | 6 |
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