An Accessibility-driven Method for Planning First and Last Mile Micromobility Services

In several urban areas, the scarcity of shared micromobility stations to serve first and last mile trips coupled with inadequate connections to public transport, limit access to a significant portion of the city’s residents. While some dockless schemes are available, these primarily cater to the needs of those in the city center, leaving other areas unserved. Micromobility accessibility is a vital factor in identifying areas with a shortage of mobility connections to public transport stops. This research develops a public transport accessibility-driven approach for first/last micromobility planning, thus identifying areas that have the potential to deploy first-last mile micromobility services. It builds on metrics to assess the potential of traffic analysis zones (TAZs) for implementing micromobility; the method is applied in the city of Thessaloniki in Greece. Initially, it highlights the significant volume of trips within TAZs and then estimates the proportion of served population by public transport stops by using walking distances. A service index to measure micromobility access to and from public transport stops, a road grade and a public transport frequency index supplement the method. Specific TAZs where there’s a notably high percentage of unserved trips are identified, indicating these areas could experience the most substantial advantages from area extensions for shared micromobility services.