Background: In a world where every municipality is pursuing the goals of more sustainable mobility, bicycles play a fundamental role in getting rid of private cars and travelling by an eco-friendly mode of transport. Additionally, private and shared bikes can be used as a feeder transit system, solving the problem of the first- and last-mile trips. Thanks to GIS (Geographic Information System) software, it is possible to evaluate the effectiveness of such a sustainable means of transport in future users’ modal choice. Methods: Running an accessibility analysis of cycling and rail transport services, the potential mobility demand attracted by these services and the possible multimodality between bicycle and rail transport systems can be assessed. Moreover, thanks to a modal choice model calibrated for high school students, it could be verified if students will be really motivated to adopt this solution for their home-to-school trips. Results: The GIS-based analysis showed that almost half of the active population in the study area might potentially abandon the use of their private car in favour of a bike and its combination with public transport systems; furthermore, the percentage of the students of one high school of Palermo, the Einstein High School, sharply increases from 1.5% up to 10.1%, thanks also to the combination with the rail transport service. Conclusions: The GIS-based methodology shows that multimodal transport can be an effective way to pursue a more sustainable mobility in cities and efficiently connect suburbs with low-frequent public transport services to the main public transport nodes.

No abstract

No abstract

The potential success of shared mobility services in the urban area strongly depends on careful tariff planning, adequate sizing of the fleet and efficient integrated public transport system, as well as on the application of policies in favor of sustainable modes of transport. The balance between earnings and expenses is not always an easy target for the companies in those cities where these services are not well-rooted in the citizens' mobility habits. Often only large operators in the sector can continue to offer a service generating profit. However, several factors can determine the success or the failure of shared mobility services. The objective of this study is to identify, thanks to the help of a case study, success and failure factors, developing an approach that is supportive for companies in managing the services and optimizing fares and fleet to increase the number of members and maximize profits. The city of Palermo has been chosen as a case study: the "Amigo" carsharing service -partly station-based, partly free-floating -is a service managed by the municipal company AMAT S.p.A., which operates also the public transport service.