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A quasi-experimental evaluation of the impact of bike-sharing stations on micro-level robbery occurrence

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Abstract

Objectives

To examine if the implementation of bike-sharing stations is linked to robbery occurrence in micro-level street corner units in Cincinnati, OH, USA.

Methods

Propensity score matching was used to select comparison street corner units. The effect of bike-sharing station implementation on robbery occurrence across weekly, biweekly, and monthly observations was estimated using repeated measures multi-level logistic regression models.

Results

Bike-sharing stations did not statistically significantly link to robbery occurrence in immediate or nearby street corner units after implementation.

Conclusions

Numerous explanations consistent with Crime Pattern Theory may explain the null effect of bike-sharing stations on robbery occurrence. Future research should continue to examine how changes in the urban backcloth, such as bike-sharing stations, impact geographic crime patterns.

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Notes

  1. The end date for the relocated station was the last day of February 2015.

  2. The other 11 stations were located across the Ohio River in Covington, Newport, and Bellevue, KY.

  3. These dates were gleaned from local media reports and personal communication with Red Bike’s staff.

  4. The point was confirmed based on the stations’ addresses and authors’ direct observations of the stations.

  5. The total number of robberies included in the estimation samples were: (1) 618 for the (bi)weekly observations when just the bike-share and comparison street corner units were modeled, (2) 1181 for the (bi)weekly observations when the adjacent street corner units were modeled with the previous sample, (3) 620 for the monthly observations when just the bike-share and comparison street corner units were modeled, and (4) 1184 for the monthly observations when the adjacent street corner units were modeled with the previous sample.

  6. Multi-level negative binomial regression models produced substantively similar results for the monthly periods, but failed to converge for the weekly and biweekly periods due to sparse counts.

  7. Quadratic and cubic temporal trends were also considered, but the substantive impact of the bike-share stations were not changed, so we elected for more parsimonious models after considering Bayesian information criteria (BIC) scores (Rabe-Hesketh and Skrondal 2012a).

  8. We thank an anonymous reviewer for raising this point.

  9. These calculations are estimates, given how the ridership data are presented in the report and the stations’ varying opening dates previously discussed.

  10. A request for usage data went unanswered by Cincinnati Red Bike.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank J.C. Barnes and the anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments on drafts of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Criminal Justice, University of Cincinnati, P.O. Box 210389, Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA

    Cory P. Haberman & Samantha Henderson

  2. Marywood University, Department of Social Sciences, Criminal Justice Program, Scranton, PA, USA

    Jeffrey E. Clutter

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  1. Cory P. Haberman
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Correspondence to Cory P. Haberman.

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Haberman, C.P., Clutter, J.E. & Henderson, S. A quasi-experimental evaluation of the impact of bike-sharing stations on micro-level robbery occurrence. J Exp Criminol 14, 227–240 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11292-017-9312-4

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