INRIX has ranked the top U.S. cities where micromobility (defined as shared bikes, e-bikes, and e-scooters) has the most potential.
According to the National Association of City Transportation Officials' trip distance estimates, scooters frequently are used for trips between a half-mile and a mile, whereas bike distances are typically between one mile and three miles. Analyzing more than 50 million anonymous car trips, INRIX found that 48 percent of all car trips in the most congested U.S. metro areas were less than three miles (20 percent were greater than one mile; 16 percent were between one and two miles; and 12 percent were between two and three miles). If a fraction of these vehicle trips were replaced with scooter and bike trips, American cities could reap significant benefits, according to INRIX.
Honolulu, Hawaii; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Nashville, Tennessee, were the top three cities with the greatest profile for micromobility to succeed and reduce vehicle trips. These cities also feature warm climates with minimal topographic variation, providing further support for micromobility. The high proportion of short-distance trips – independent of a city's density or public transit network – highlighted the universal potential for shared scooters and bikes.
Although automobile-centric sunbelt cities like Dallas (ranked 19th) and Phoenix (ranked 23rd) had a lower proportion of 0-1 mile trips (18 percent and 17 percent, respectively) compared to denser cities such as Chicago or New York (both 22 percent), the small variation across all metros indicated the universal suitability for micromobility services, according to INRIX.
| Rank | City | Trips 0-1 Mile | Trips 1-2 Miles | Trips 2-3 Miles | Combined |
| 1 | Honolulu | 25% | 19% | 12% | 55% |
| 2 | New Orleans | 22% | 17% | 12% | 52% |
| 3 | Nashville | 22% | 17% | 12% | 51% |
| 4 | Chicago | 22% | 17% | 12% | 51% |
| 5 | Charlotte | 20% | 18% | 13% | 51% |
| 6 | New York | 22% | 17% | 11% | 51% |
| 7 | Portland | 21% | 17% | 13% | 51% |
| 8 | Pittsburgh | 23% | 17% | 11% | 50% |
| 9 | Los Angeles | 21% | 17% | 12% | 49% |
| 10 | San Francisco | 20% | 17% | 12% | 49% |
To demonstrate a city's potential benefit for shared micromobility, INRIX analyzed and constructed heat maps to score and visualize results for New York City.
The highest number of short-distance trips in Manhattan occurred in midtown and the Upper East Side. While Manhattan had the highest transit coverage of any major American city, the Upper East Side was less accessible than the Upper West Side, which corresponded to greater proportion of short-distance trips.
Similar to Los Angeles' Purple Line Extension, New York City has pursued rail expansion to address low transit accessibility via the 2nd Avenue Subway Extension, with its first phase opening in 2017 and proposed second phase expansion to 125th St. Micromobility-as-a-service could provide a valuable alternative to driving in lower transit service areas and increase the catchment area for existing stations, INRIX said.
With congestion tolling and the expansion of protected bike lanes in New York City, shared micromobility services could safely provide critical first- and last-mile connections to neighborhoods throughout the city, according to INRIX.
INRIX added that micromobility faces a promising future by replacing short distance vehicle trips and providing currently underserved first- and last-mile solutions for public transit riders. In its opinion, the ultimate success of these new modes will be predicated on two key steps: cities having a clear understanding of where micromobility is best positioned to offset vehicle travel; and cities having the necessary tools to engage with and manage these services. Leveraging trip data and insights can provide a foundational view of how people move through a city's road networks.
Learn more: http://www2.inrix.com/micromobility-study-2019.
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].