Research Project Description
Mineta Transportation Institute
Carsharing and Public Parking Policies: Assessing Benefits, Costs and Best Practices
Project Number: 2612
Research Project:This study will increase awareness of the benefits of carsharing programs in urban areas, and also propose solutions regarding the parking needs of carsharing programs. It will provide recommendations to program planners on how to best communicate the benefits of carsharing to those publics who can benefit most from these programs, including low-income households and college students.
Principal Investigator: Susan A. Shaheen, Ph.D., Policy and Behavioral Research Program Leader, California PATH, University of California, Berkeley
Team Members:Caroline J. Rodier, Ph.D., Assistant Research Engineer, University of California, Berkeley; Joseph Michael Pogodzinski, Ph.D., Professor, San Jose State University; Gail Murray
Institution:
Mineta Transportation Institute
Telephone Number:
(408) 924-7560
Email Address: mti@mti.sjsu.edu
Project Objective:
An increasing body of empirical evidence now indicates that carsharing is an effective tool to reduce auto ownership, vehicle miles traveled (VMT), and vehicle emissions; increase transit use; and allow for more efficient use of roadways and parking facilities.
This project will examine car sharing programs in existence or under consideration in several U.S. cities, including San Francisco; San Diego; Portland; Seattle; Philadelphia; Evanston; Washington, DC; the Boston Metropolitan Area; and Arlington, VA. An important component of this study will include an examination of how to best provide parking spaces for carsharing programs.
Project Abstract:
Auto ownership is widespread in the U.S. In 2001, 92 percent of households owned at least one vehicle and over 60 percent owned two or more vehicles. With auto ownership and fuel costs rising, individuals are seeking alternatives to private vehicle ownership. Short-term auto rentals or carsharing programs¾through hourly rates and subscription-access plans¾provide such an alternative, especially for individuals living in major urban areas with access to transit. An increasing body of empirical evidence indicates that carsharing is an effective tool to:
• Reduce auto ownership, vehicle miles traveled (VMT), and emissions
• Increase transit use
• Allow for more efficient use of roadways and parking facilities; and
• Improve low-income households’ access to jobs and services
At present, over 135,000 individuals in the U.S. belong to carsharing organizations; however, recent studies suggest that carsharing membership and vehicle growth rates have slowed in both the U.S. and Canada. One of the major barriers to expansion of carsharing services is the development of a dense network of access locations for carsharing vehicles by users, such as on-street and transit-based parking.
As a result, municipalities across the U.S. are evaluating how best to provide parking spaces to carsharing vehicles in a fair and equitable manner. In this process, municipalities are seeking guidance on a number of key questions based on the fledgling experience of other municipalities.
In this study, the authors will attempt to answer the key questions faced by municipalities as they attempt to implement and expand public on- and off-street parking policies for carsharing organizations. The proposed study will include a series of expert interviews with key officials and leaders of carsharing organizations that have initiated, expanded, or are considering public carsharing parking policies (San Francisco; San Diego; Portland; Seattle; Philadelphia; Evanston; Washington, DC; the Boston Metropolitan Area; and Arlington).
In addition, we will develop a method to estimate the benefits of on- and off-street carsharing parking and apply it to at least two case studies.
The proposed project will produce a method that municipalities can apply to develop policies that balance the desire to promote both carsharing and transit use but protect the economic value of the parking space to the municipality/society. In addition, the study will make recommendations to cities for developing optimal parking carsharing policies given the specific circumstances of the city (e.g., type of parking, carsharing demand, and objectives) based on the results of our proposed expert interviews and the benefit-cost case studies.
Milestones Dates:
Task 1: Institutional Review Board
Obtain institutional review board approval for the expert interviews: (1) complete forms, (2) expert interview discussion, and (3) make required revisions.
Task 2: Literature Review
Review recent literature that evaluates the effect of carsharing, describes new carsharing programs, and social benefits and costs of carsharing.
Task 3: Expert Parking Policy Interviews
Identify experts, finalize discussion guide, conduct interviews, draft result summary, and synthesize results for the final report.
Task 4: Public Perception Clipboard Survey
Conduct clipboard survey of 400 Bay Area residents living and working in neighborhoods and commercial areas with on-street parking, analyze results, and document in final report.
Task 5: Case Studies
Develop case study method, collect data for two case studies, apply method to data, and analyze results.
Task 6: Final Peer Review Report
Draft Final Peer Review report.
Task 7: Revise Final Report
Draft Final Review report based on peer reviews. Submit TRB paper.
Final completion date
Total Budget: $66,556 (Include $6,450 for MTI’s costs in both above amounts)
Student Involvement:
Student Research Assistant, San Jose State University TBA
Technology Transfer Activities:
Upon publication, pdf and html versions will be available on the Mineta Transportation Institute web site. The project experience and data will be available for community meetings. Authors are encouraged to submit articles based on the research to relevant journals and to present the information to end-users at conferences.
Potential Benefits of the Project:
This study will increase understanding of the benefits of carsharing programs in the United States, and it will produce a method that municipalities can apply to develop policies that balance the desire to promote both carsharing and transit use but protect the economic value of the parking space to the municipality/society. In addition, the study will make recommendations to cities for developing optimal parking carsharing policies given the specific circumstances of the city (e.g., type of parking, carsharing demand, and objectives) based on the results of our proposed expert interviews and the benefit-cost case studies.
TRB Keywords:
Car distribution; Car ownership; Car supply; Off-street parking; On-street parking
Primary Subject:
Transportation/Carsharing/Parking
Goals:
The project will increase understanding of the publics’ perception of carsharing programs and their benefits. It will also produce a method that municipalities can apply to develop policies that balance the desire to promote both carsharing and transit use, but also protect the economic value of the parking space to the municipality/society. In addition, the study will make recommendations to cities for developing optimal parking carsharing policies given the specific circumstances of the city (e.g., type of parking, carsharing demand, and objectives) based on the results of our proposed expert interviews and the benefit-cost case studies.
Enabling Research:
Literature review; Case studies; Interviews with key city officials and leaders of carsharing organizations; Survey of public perception of carsharing practices.
Modal Orientation:
Car
