Civil society-led shared mobility for transport equity? An empirical analysis from Berlin

This study explores the potential of community-led shared mobility to achieve equitable transport, using a socially innovative cargo bike-sharing system in Berlin as a case study. The empirical approach combines booking records, survey responses, and spatial data. This approach enables an analysis of transport equity in terms of spatial distribution, as well as user structure and behavior. The results suggest that community-led initiatives may complement commercial shared mobility operators and be associated with more equitable transport system outcomes. In particular, the results show no differences in cargo bike host locations based on social status index groups. Additionally, the gender distribution aligns with that of the general population. Cargo bikes were found to be used for diverse purposes which differed by social status area and gender. The findings suggest that promoting socially innovative, community-led projects may represent a promising governance approach associated with enhanced transport equity.