An urban shared pooled mobility system cuts distance travelled by over 50%
Alexander Schmaus, Felix Creutzig, Nicolas Koch, Florian Nachtigall, Nora Molkenthin
Abstract
• Number of vehicles could be reduced by nearly 98% in the whole area of Berlin. • Distance traveled is around 61% lower. • With an increasing population density, the relative number of required vehicles decreases. Shared pooled mobility has the potential to reduce both the necessary number of private vehicles and the total driven distance. Here, we use logged car trips in Berlin as input for ride-pooling simulations to analyze the technical potential − assuming a complete switch from private to shared mobility. We measure the share of sharable trips, average vehicle occupancy, relative passenger travel time, and relative driven distance compared to individual driving. In the entire area of Berlin, we observe that a ride-pooling system with 26,500 vehicles could replace all 1,09 million private vehicles and their trips. The travel time is 55% higher, the average vehicle occupancy increases 2.1-fold, and the overall distance traveled is reduced by 61%. Our results demonstrate that system-wide urban efficiency and quality of life benefits − elimination of congestion and gain of public space for people − would come at higher time costs for commuters.