A case study of a last-mile solution in a high-density residential neighborhood

Studies on new transportation services such as autonomous taxis and autonomous shuttles are underway in various cities around the world. Most of these studies discuss the effects (e.g., vehicle miles traveled, travel time, delay rate, and so on) of introducing new modes of transportation. This study analyzes the impact of providing autonomous minibus service in a dense residential area. Regular buses usually run along main roads with more than one lane, but minibuses can operate along roads with a single lane. There are many one-way roads around high-density apartments such as in Korean cities, so providing a last-mile solution can have a positive effect and increase the demand for public transportation. In addition, this study compared the level-of- service between different modes of transportation (e.g., car, walking, and minibus), unlike previous studies in which minibus demand was fixed. The results showed that minibuses did not replace the trunk traffic. These results suggested that minibus service should be used as an auxiliary for trunk traffic. According to the scenarios provided by the minibus, it was analyzed that the minibus service increased the public transport mode share by 3-5%.