Determining the exact location of a public bicycle station-The optimal distance between the building entrance/exit and the station

PLoS One. 2019 Feb 20;14(2):e0212478. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0212478. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

As a sustainable mode of transportation, public bicycles significantly improve daily mobility. The location of stations is a key element for the success of a public bicycle system, as a long walking distance will reduce people's willingness to use this mode of transportation. Building forms in China are different from the open type seen abroad. Many residential, office and school areas are enclosed by walls, and pedestrian flow is concentrated at the entrances/exits of these areas. Therefore, the station must be located close to the building entrance/exit. Previous studies on station location located the stations only per zone, without providing the exact locations of the stations in the zones. This paper considers the optimal distance between the building entrance/exit and the station to determine the exact station locations. The results can serve as a reference for the planning and optimization of public bicycle stations. A questionnaire survey was conducted in Beijing to determine users' walking distances to the stations. The results indicated that the walking distance decay laws of stations were different for different land uses. Moreover, a binary logistic model was developed to verify that users with different travel purposes have different walking distances. Based on the above results, we explored the optimal distances and tolerable distances between the building entrance/exit and the station for different land uses. These distances can be used to determine exact station locations to meet users' physiological and psychological needs.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Beijing
  • Bicycling*
  • Conservation of Energy Resources
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Public Sector
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Transportation / methods*
  • Urban Population
  • Walking
  • Young Adult

Grants and funding

The authors received no specific funding for this work.