An Examination Of Inter- And Multi-Modal Performance: Insights Into Chicago's Expanding Transportation Choices

The character of urban transportation and mobility is dramatically changing as a result of the explosive growth of shared-use modes (SUM) of travel such as bikesharing, carsharing, and ridesourcing. Although these new forms of mobility are freeing riders from mode- and ownership-constrained choices of travel, they are also creating tremendous anxiety and uncertainty among planners and policymakers. Transportation officials and the broader public are attempting to understand how shared-use modes best fit into their transportation systems and travel needs. This study estimates and compares the costs (both time and monetary) of 1,000 sample trips taken across six categories of travel modes--i.e., walking, bicycling, bikesharing, ridesourcing (Uber) and public transit (bus and train)--calculated both independently and combined (i.e., unimodal and multimodal) throughout the City of Chicago. Trip origins and destinations were selected via a hexagonal, population- and distance-weighted stratified random sample design that allows for comparisons of modal richness and performance across community areas. Results provide empirical insights into inter- and multi-modal competition while also revealing variations in transportation service and performance gaps.