IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v17y2024i2p356-d1316685.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Can Electric Vehicle Carsharing Bridge the Green Divide? A Study of BlueLA’s Environmental Impacts among Underserved Communities and the Broader Population

Author

Listed:
  • Ziad Yassine

    (Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, 109 McLaughlin Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA)

  • Elliot W. Martin

    (Transportation Sustainability Research Center, University of California, 2150 Allston Way, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA)

  • Susan A. Shaheen

    (Civil and Environmental Engineering and Transportation Sustainability Research Center, University of California, 408 McLaughlin Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA)

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the potential of electric vehicle (EV) carsharing services to address social and environmental disparities in urban transportation through an evaluation of BlueLA, a one-way station-based carsharing service in Los Angeles, California. BlueLA provides a clean and affordable mobility option in underserved communities that face significant air quality burdens and have historically been excluded from environmental benefits. By incorporating BlueLA trip activity data from January 2021 to December 2022 ( n = 59,112 trips) and an online user survey implemented in early December 2022 ( n = 215 responses), we estimate the impacts of BlueLA on personal vehicle ownership patterns, vehicle miles traveled (VMT), and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The results show an overall net reduction in VMT and GHG emissions of 463,845 miles and 656 metric tons, respectively, among the BlueLA user population (3074 registered users). When disaggregating impacts by BlueLA member type, our findings show a net reduction of 234 and 371 metric tons in GHG emissions for Standard (general population) and Community (low-income qualified) members, respectively. Additionally, our socio-demographic analysis highlights clear disparities between these two member groups, with Community members typically having lower incomes (i.e., 74% earning below USD 50,000 annually); lower educational attainment (i.e., 46% with at most an associate’s degree); and larger households (i.e., 23% living in households of four or more) compared to Standard members (i.e., 19% earning below USD 50,000, 24% with at most an associate’s degree, and 9% in households of four or more). Moreover, when comparing the VMT and associated GHG emissions due to BlueLA, we find that the presence of BlueLA reduces VMT and GHG emissions by 34% and 48% respectively, and each BlueLA vehicle replaces 16 personally owned vehicles (shed and postponed purchases). Last, when comparing the emissions produced by the electric fleet of BlueLA to those of a comparable fleet of internal combustion engine vehicles, we find that the use of an EV fleet reduces GHG emissions by 43% in comparison. The BlueLA carsharing service has led to notable net reductions in VMT and thus GHG emissions, with a major share of these reductions observed among Community members.

Suggested Citation

  • Ziad Yassine & Elliot W. Martin & Susan A. Shaheen, 2024. "Can Electric Vehicle Carsharing Bridge the Green Divide? A Study of BlueLA’s Environmental Impacts among Underserved Communities and the Broader Population," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(2), pages 1-18, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:17:y:2024:i:2:p:356-:d:1316685
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/2/356/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/2/356/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shaheen, Susan & Martin, Elliot & Totte, Hannah, 2020. "Zero-emission vehicle exposure within U.S. carsharing fleets and impacts on sentiment toward electric-drive vehicles," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 23-32.
    2. Rodier, Caroline & Randall, Creighton & Garcia Sanchez, Juan Carlos & Harrison, Makenna & Francisco, Jerel & Tovar, Angelly, 2022. "Challenges and Opportunities for Publicly Funded Electric Vehicle Carsharing," Institute of Transportation Studies, Working Paper Series qt5nf0m5mc, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis.
    3. Martin, Elliot PhD & Stocker, Adam & Nichols, Aqshems & Shaheen, Susan PhD, 2021. "Roundtrip Carsharing in New York City: An Evaluation of a Pilot Program and System Impacts," Institute of Transportation Studies, Research Reports, Working Papers, Proceedings qt5kb1r71v, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Berkeley.
    4. Shaheen, Susan & Martin, Elliot & Totte, Hannah, 2020. "Zero-emission vehicle exposure within U.S. carsharing fleets and impacts on sentiment toward electric-drive vehicles," Institute of Transportation Studies, Research Reports, Working Papers, Proceedings qt95j7g71k, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Berkeley.
    5. Susan Shaheen & Elliot Martin & Mikaela Hoffman-Stapleton, 2021. "Shared mobility and urban form impacts: a case study of peer-to-peer (P2P) carsharing in the US," Journal of Urban Design, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(2), pages 141-158, March.
    6. Shaheen, Susan PhD & Cohen, Adam & Randolph, Michael & Farrar, Emily & Davis, Richard & Nichols, Aqshems, 2019. "Shared Mobility Policy Playbook," Institute of Transportation Studies, Research Reports, Working Papers, Proceedings qt9678b4xs, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Berkeley.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chen, Fangxi & Yin, Zhiwei & Ye, Yingwei & Sun, Daniel(Jian), 2020. "Taxi hailing choice behavior and economic benefit analysis of emission reduction based on multi-mode travel big data," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 73-84.
    2. Iogansen, Xiatian & Wang, Kailai & Bunch, David & Matson, Grant & Circella, Giovanni, 2023. "Deciphering the factors associated with adoption of alternative fuel vehicles in California: An investigation of latent attitudes, socio-demographics, and neighborhood effects," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    3. Qian Duan & Xin Ye & Jian Li & Ke Wang, 2020. "Empirical Modeling Analysis of Potential Commute Demand for Carsharing in Shanghai, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-18, January.
    4. Katarzyna Turoń, 2022. "Selection of Car Models with a Classic and Alternative Drive to the Car-Sharing Services from the System’s Rare Users Perspective," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-15, September.
    5. Jorge Martins & F. P. Brito, 2020. "Alternative Fuels for Internal Combustion Engines," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-34, August.
    6. Rosales-Tristancho, Abel & Brey, Raúl & Carazo, Ana F. & Brey, J. Javier, 2022. "Analysis of the barriers to the adoption of zero-emission vehicles in Spain," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 158(C), pages 19-43.
    7. Zou, Pengyu & Zhang, Bin & Yi, Yi & Wang, Zhaohua, 2024. "How does travel satisfaction affect preference for shared electric vehicles? An empirical study using large-scale monitoring data and online text mining," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 59-71.
    8. Burghard, Uta & Scherrer, Aline, 2022. "Sharing vehicles or sharing rides - Psychological factors influencing the acceptance of carsharing and ridepooling in Germany," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    9. Manzolli, Jônatas Augusto & Trovão, João Pedro & Antunes, Carlos Henggeler, 2022. "A review of electric bus vehicles research topics – Methods and trends," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    10. Duarte Souza Alvarenga Santos, Nathália & Rückert Roso, Vinícius & Teixeira Malaquias, Augusto César & Coelho Baêta, José Guilherme, 2021. "Internal combustion engines and biofuels: Examining why this robust combination should not be ignored for future sustainable transportation," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).
    11. Rosales-Tristancho, Abel & Carazo, Ana F. & Brey, Raúl, 2021. "A study of the willingness of Spanish drivers to pay a premium for ZEVs," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    12. Aihua Fan & Xumei Chen, 2020. "Exploring the Relationship between Transport Interventions, Mode Choice, and Travel Perception: An Empirical Study in Beijing, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-19, June.
    13. Katarzyna Turoń & Andrzej Kubik & Feng Chen & Hualan Wang & Bogusław Łazarz, 2020. "A Holistic Approach to Electric Shared Mobility Systems Development—Modelling and Optimization Aspects," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-19, November.
    14. Yue Wang & Yuanfang Zhu & Chunyi Wei & Meilan Jiang & Toshiyuki Yamamoto, 2024. "Carsharing Worldwide: Case Studies on Carsharing Development in China, Europe, Japan, and the United States," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-23, May.
    15. Katarzyna Turoń, 2022. "Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis during Selection of Vehicles for Car-Sharing Services—Regular Users’ Expectations," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-15, October.
    16. Wesley Darling & Jacquelyn Broader & Adam Cohen & Susan Shaheen, 2023. "Going My Way? Understanding Curb Management and Incentive Policies to Increase Pooling Service Use and Public Transit Linkages in the San Francisco Bay Area," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-20, September.
    17. Thurner, Thomas & Fursov, Konstantin & Nefedova, Alena, 2022. "Early adopters of new transportation technologies: Attitudes of Russia’s population towards car sharing, the electric car and autonomous driving," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 403-417.
    18. Liguo Lou & Lin Li & Sung-Byung Yang & Joon Koh, 2021. "Promoting User Participation of Shared Mobility in the Sharing Economy: Evidence from Chinese Bike Sharing Services," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-17, February.
    19. Andrzej Kubik & Katarzyna Turoń & Piotr Folęga & Feng Chen, 2023. "CO 2 Emissions—Evidence from Internal Combustion and Electric Engine Vehicles from Car-Sharing Systems," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-21, February.
    20. Rodier, Caroline & Randall, Creighton & Garcia Sanchez, Juan Carlos & Harrison, Makenna & Francisco, Jerel & Tovar, Angelly, 2022. "Challenges and Opportunities for Publicly Funded Electric Vehicle Carsharing," Institute of Transportation Studies, Working Paper Series qt5nf0m5mc, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:17:y:2024:i:2:p:356-:d:1316685. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.