The effect of dockless e-bike-sharing on reducing carbon emissions: A dynamic investigation of two small Chinese cities between 2020 and 2022

Abstract

Transport sector is a major contributor to global carbon emissions. E-bike-sharing (EBS), emerging as the next generation of shared micromobility, offers an eco-friendly alternative to reduce mobility-associated carbon emissions. Based on user-generated EBS data of one week in three consecutive years between 2020 and 2022 in two small Chinese cities (i.e., Yuhuan and Rui'an), this paper aims to quantify trip-specific carbon emissions and then investigate the spatiotemporal dynamic changes of carbon emission reduction patterns. Results show that EBS reduced 29.50 and 49.12 t of carbon emissions over three weeks from 2020 to 2022 in Yuhuan and Rui'an, respectively. Over 95 % of the reduced carbon emissions are from substituting driving trips. The trip-level environmental benefit of EBS in Yuhuan is 306.29–382.64 g of CO₂, higher than that in Rui'an (172.21–177.07 g). Carbon reduction patterns are temporally similar to typical travel patterns and show strong spatial auto-correlation. There are more carbon emission reductions in leisure-related places on weekends and education-related places on weekdays. This study informs relevant transport planning and policy-making for improving e-bike-sharing services and supporting sustainable development in cities.