Exploring the Night-Time Mobility Usage Pattern of Seoul Public Bike

Purpose: This study aims to analyze night-time public bike usage to examine urban night-time mobility patterns and characteristics. At night, public bikes can serve as an alternative mode of transport in areas where regular public transit has stopped operating, where access to late-night buses is limited, or where the use of taxis or private cars is costly or inconvenient. Considering these characteristics, this study seeks to identify how public bikes are used at night. Method: Using Seoul’s public bike usage records, this study focuses on night-time mobility patterns. To capture night-time travel patterns, hourly rent and return patterns by docking station were clustered using hierarchical clustering. Clusters with notable night-time activity were then again grouped, and the resulting clusters were compared in terms of land use type, trip distance, and user age. Result: The paper revealed that areas with frequent night-time public bike usage were located primarily in the outskirts of Seoul rather than the city center. Clusters also exhibited distinct differences in travel distance and user age. These findings suggest that, due to their potential to substitute for public transit, public bikes are more actively used with limited access to conventional transportation services during the night.