Twenty Years of Car Sharing: a Case Study on the City of Vancouver’S Role in the Growth of Car Sharing in Vancouver

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Twenty Years of Car Sharing: a Case Study on the City of Vancouver’S Role in the Growth of Car Sharing in Vancouver Twenty Years of Car Sharing: A case study on the City of Vancouver’s role in the growth of car sharing in Vancouver By Mitchell Shaw B.A. (International Studies), Simon Fraser University, 2012 Project Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Urban Studies in the Urban Studies Program Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences © Mitchell Shaw 2018 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Fall 2018 Copyright in this work rests with the author. Please ensure that any reproduction or re-use is done in accordance with the relevant national copyright legislation. Approval Name: Mitchell Shaw Degree: Master of Urban Studies Title: Twenty Years of Car Sharing: A case study on the City of Vancouver’s role in the growth of car sharing in Vancouver Examining Committee: Chair: Peter V. Hall Professor of Urban Studies and Geography Anthony Perl Senior Supervisor Professor of Urban Studies and Political Science Patrick J. Smith Supervisor Professor of Urban Studies and Political Science Emmanuel Brunet-Jailly External Examiner Professor of Public Policy and Jean Monnet Chair in Innovative Governance University of Victoria Date Defended: May 23, 2018 ii Ethics Statement iii Abstract This thesis explores the City of Vancouver’s role in supporting the growth of car sharing in Vancouver from 1997 to 2016. In December 2016, Vancouver had the highest number of car share members and vehicles in a single city across North America. Using a mixed methods approach, City documents and interviews are used to assess the impact that City policies have had on the development of this mobility service. The research found that City policies, including the provision of permit and dedicated on- street parking, parking incentives for new developments and incorporating car share vehicles into the City’s fleet have had the greatest impact in supporting car share growth in terms of members and usage. The thesis concludes that the City of Vancouver has strongly supported the growth of car sharing; however, given the absence of a broader car sharing planning framework, existing policies remain disconnected. City car share policies that were introduced in the 2000s should be updated to incorporate advances in technology: autonomous driving, fleet electrification, and ride sharing. More robust terms of measurement would also improve the City’s opportunity to leverage positive outcomes that car sharing brings, such as a reduction in private vehicle ownership and use. Keywords: car share; transportation; City of Vancouver; Modo; Zipcar; car2go iv Acknowledgements I would like to express the sincerest appreciation to my Senior Supervisor, Dr. Anthony Perl for his support and continual guidance throughout the completion of my research project. Professor Perl’s patience, expertise, and insight made this a stronger thesis and I am very appreciative of his work. I would like to give a special thanks to Professor Patrick Smith, my external examiner Dr. Emmanuel Brunet-Jailly and my examining committee for their diligent oversight and insightful commentary. I would like to thank my interviewees for volunteering their time and sharing their wisdom with me. A big thank-you to the Urban Studies Program and my classmates who have taught me a great deal about the cities we passionately strive to improve. I would like to thank my loving wife Elizabeth for her patience and support throughout the completion of this project. Her encouragement was instrumental in the completion of this thesis. Lastly, I am grateful to my family and friends for encouraging me to pursue my passions. v Table of Contents Approval ......................................................................................................................... ii Ethics Statement ........................................................................................................... iii Abstract ......................................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................ v Table of Contents ......................................................................................................... vi List of Figures ............................................................................................................. viii List of Tables ................................................................................................................ ix List of Acronyms ........................................................................................................... x Chapter 1. Introduction and Purpose of Research ................................................... 1 1.1. What is car sharing? .......................................................................................... 8 1.2. The history of car sharing ................................................................................. 9 1.3. Car Sharing and Vancouver ........................................................................... 13 1.4. Impacts of car sharing ..................................................................................... 22 1.5. Maximizing positive impacts from car sharing ............................................. 28 Chapter 2. Literature Review ................................................................................... 31 2.1. The Role of Cities in Policy Formulation ....................................................... 31 2.2. Vancouver and Transportation Planning ...................................................... 35 2.3. The Sharing Economy ..................................................................................... 46 2.4. Mobility and the Environment ....................................................................... 49 Chapter 3. Methodology and Data Collection ......................................................... 53 3.1. Developing a Conceptual Framework ............................................................ 53 3.2. Content Analysis .............................................................................................. 59 3.3. Qualitative Interviews ..................................................................................... 60 Chapter 4. Evaluating Vancouver’s Support for Car Sharing .............................. 63 4.1. Levels of Support ............................................................................................. 63 4.2. Types of Support .............................................................................................. 64 4.2.1. Marketing ...................................................................................................... 65 4.2.2. Administration .............................................................................................. 66 4.2.3. Parking .......................................................................................................... 68 4.2.4. Financial Contribution .................................................................................. 72 4.2.5. Memberships/Fleet ....................................................................................... 74 4.2.6. Planning Support .......................................................................................... 76 4.2.7. Development Process ................................................................................... 78 4.2.8. Tax-Related Solutions .................................................................................. 84 4.3. Evidence that Vancouver Supports Car Sharing .......................................... 84 Chapter 5. Findings and Discussion ......................................................................... 87 5.1. The Importance of Policy ................................................................................ 91 5.1.1. Learning from Within ................................................................................... 91 5.1.2. Learning from other cities ............................................................................ 96 5.2. The Role of Pioneers and Champions ............................................................ 97 vi 5.3. The Future of Car Sharing.............................................................................. 98 5.4. Conclusions ..................................................................................................... 102 References ...................................................................................................................... 105 Appendix A. ................................................................................................................... 118 Appendix B. ................................................................................................................... 119 Appendix C. ................................................................................................................... 120 vii List of Figures Figure 1. Transportation Hierarchy (© City of Vancouver, 2012) .............................2 Figure 2. Car2go Membership in Vancouver (© Shaw, 2017) ...................................3 Figure 3. European Car Share Growth (© Shaheen & Cohen, 2016) .......................10 Figure 4. North American Car Share Growth (© Shaheen & Cohen, 2016) ............12 Figure 5. Canadian Car Sharing Growth (© Shaheen, et. al., 2008) ........................13 Figure 6. Car2go Home Area (© car2go, 2017 .........................................................18 Figure 7. Evo
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