Do mobility hubs boost the adoption and impact of carsharing in the urban periphery? Insights from a mixed-methods case study

• Mobility hubs and carsharing services in urban peripheries are under-researched. • Interviews and a survey were conducted with residents living near peripheral mobility hubs. • Peripheral mobility hubs increase the interest of non-carsharing members in carsharing. • Peripheral mobility hubs increase the willingness of carsharing users to forgo car ownership. • Effects of mobility hubs are constrained by systemic deficiencies in carsharing services in peripheral areas. Mobility hubs represent an emerging instrument in transportation planning, with the potential to catalyze the uptake and effects of carsharing. However, extant research on the interplay between mobility hubs and carsharing is limited and has focused predominantly on highly urbanized areas. The question of how mobility hubs and carsharing interact in the urban periphery, where conditions for carsharing are considerably less favorable, remains largely unexplored in the literature. In this context, our paper seeks to answer whether mobility hubs enhance the adoption and impact of carsharing on the outskirts of a major city. Utilizing newly established mobility hubs in southern Hamburg, Germany, as a case study, our analysis draws on 14 interviews with residents living near these hubs and a survey of the local population (n = 310). Our findings indicate that peripheral mobility hubs have a positive influence on the adoption of carsharing and the willingness of carsharing users to forgo car ownership. This phenomenon can be attributed to the heightened visibility of carsharing services and the enhanced accessibility of carsharing vehicles and parking spaces. However, the efficacy of the mobility hubs was hindered by multiple factors, including hub-related issues (e.g., parking spaces occupied by unauthorized vehicles) and systemic deficiencies in carsharing services in peripheral areas (e.g., insufficient vehicle availability or unattractive pricing for trips across the city limits). Consequently, while mobility hubs in the urban periphery demonstrate capability in fostering carsharing, their impact remains constrained in the absence of comprehensive measures to improve carsharing offerings in these areas.