Cycling Research Board Annual Meeting

Cargo bike sharing is a promising urban mobility innovation with potential to reduce carbon emissions and enhance quality of life. Yet research on behavioral acceptance in the private sector remains scarce. This study investigates acceptance of (electric) cargo bike sharing among early adopters to identify drivers for broader uptake.

We test several explanatory variables including compatibility, trialability, ease of use, perceived benefits, price value, and hedonic motivation. We also consider personality-level factors—routine seeking and environmental identity. Data were collected via an online survey in a German medium-sized city (n = 127) using non-random opportunity sampling. Multiple regression analyses show that ease of use, hedonic motivation, and need compatibility significantly predict behavioral acceptance (i.e. usage). Behavioral intentions (future usage) are driven by trialability, perceived benefits, and combinations of needs and value compatibility.

Results indicate that individuals’ perceived advantages of the innovation, compatibility with needs and values, and trialability are critical determinants of cargo bike sharing adoption among early adopters. Environmental identity exhibited limited explanatory power in this cohort.

These findings offer actionable implications for practitioners and policymakers aiming to scale cargo bike sharing and support a transition toward sustainable urban mobility.

Cargo-bike sharing (CBS) is emerging as a low-emission option for personal mobility and last-mile logistics, yet evidence on public acceptance and its determinants remains limited. This study examines how transport identities, willingness to pay (WTP), socio-demographic, infrastructural, and Diffusion of Innovations (DoI)–based predictors shape the intention to use CBS. We analyze data from a survey of 2,319 residents across four European cities—Budapest, Gothenburg, Karlsruhe, and Oslo. Descriptively, cyclists show the highest intention to use CBS across cities, but identity effects vary by context (for example, Karlsruhe shows no significant within-city differences, while in Oslo car drivers have lower intentions than cyclists and public transport users). In city-level regression models, the perceived ease of substituting car trips with a cargo bike consistently predicts higher intention in all four cities. Perceived compatibility and relative advantage also predict intention in three cities, with relative advantage strongest in Karlsruhe. Additional predictors vary by city: trialability matters in Budapest and Karlsruhe; perceived compatibility matters in Gothenburg and Oslo; being male (vs female) is relevant in Gothenburg; and car ownership matters in Oslo. The models explain 48.5%–58.5% of the variance in intention. Overall, CBS uptake appears driven mainly by modifiable feasibility and innovation perceptions, suggesting that locally tailored rollout strategies should emphasize practical car-trip substitution, trial opportunities, service visibility, and affordable pricing.