The Role of Transit, Shared Modes, and Public Policy in the New Mobility Landscape

Abstract

This study on opportunities to more effectively use shared modes in coordination with public transit was largely completed before the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. By early 2020, when the pandemic began, the transportation systems of most metropolitan areas included shared modes such as Uber and Lyft, bikeshare, e-scooters, and more. Although they still accounted for a small share of total travel, the shared modes were growing in availability and popularity. They showed potential to serve many societal goals to further mobility, equity, and sustainability, especially if carefully combined with public transit and scaled up substantially. The pandemic led to unprecedented drops in travel demand and deep uncertainty about when and how demand will rebound. At the time of this study’s completion, the pandemic and its immediate aftermath threatened to reshape both demand for and supply of transportation services in most locations, including public transit systems in distress from months of lost patronage and revenues. Realizing the full and potentially transformative benefits of shared services and transit will require (1) providing travelers with real- or near-real-time information on modal and multi-modal travel options and their relative costs, duration, reliability, and impacts on concerns such as carbon emissions;(2) integrated e-tickets and payment apps that will greatly simplify the process of arranging and paying for the use of multiple modes for a single trip;and (3) management across modes and jurisdictions to facilitate such outcomes. This report recommends steps to help bring about this transformation, starting in urban cores with historically robust transit service but with the aim of increasing the value and viability of transit and shared mobility services more broadly across regions.

Topics & Concepts