On ride-sourcing services of electric vehicles considering cruising for charging and parking

Abstract

Cruising of electric ride-sourcing vehicles (ERVs) when waiting for trip orders can create additional vehicle miles, which increase congestion and waste electricity. Reducing cruising is an important issue. This study investigates the strategy of allocating a portion of road space as parking for ERVs. Considering ERVs cruising for parking/charging, we analytically examine the trade-off between road capacity reduction due to reserving road space as parking and less cruising. We evaluate the effects of parking provision on reducing congestion and charging demand. We also investigate the optimal fare and fleet size of ERV services to achieve profit or social welfare maximization. Numerical studies indicate that vehicles cruising for charging might be reduced significantly with a mild increase of charging pile supply, where cruising can increase sharply after charging pile occupancy rate is at critical levels. By providing parking to ERVs, ride-sourcing demand increases, charging demand reduces, profit and social welfare increase.