Analytics and Decision Support for Public Bicycle Sharing in Tartu

Abstract

A public bicycle sharing system is a short-term rental service in which bicycles are made available for shared use. Due to the environmental, social, and health benefits of cycling, significant motivation exists for promoting cycling in a city, and public bicycle sharing is a promising approach for increasing the number of cyclists. In 2019 a public bicycle sharing program was launched in Tartu. Since then, it has experienced intense usage, but no thorough analysis has been conducted based on its novel data. This thesis aims to use this little-explored data in order to understand the mobility patterns of Tartu Smart Bike users and provide justified suggestions for improving both the existing bicycle sharing network and the cycling infrastructure of Tartu in general. As a result, a detailed analysis of the usage patterns of Tartu Smart Bike is carried out, giving a better understanding of the cyclists’ behavior and motivation in the city of Tartu. A reproducible method for locating new bicycle share stations is presented, and its results based on the case of Tartu Smart Bike are discussed and assessed. Additionally, the road usage intensity of Tartu Smart Bike users is analyzed in order to identify areas that demonstrate a lack of designated cycling infrastructure. This thesis presents both findings specific to Tartu Smart Bike and methods that can easily be adjusted for use in other cities in the hope of contributing to the development of a more bicycle-friendly society.