Implementing and Evaluating a Rural Electric Mobility Program: National Center for Sustainable Transportation

Rural residents face unique transportation challenges due to long travel distances, infrequent transit service, the high cost of car ownership, and limited access to app-based rideshare services that are common in more populated urban centers.  These barriers are particularly significant for lower-income residents, who may struggle to afford a personal vehicle but have few alternatives to get to work, school, medical appointments, and other important destinations.

Researchers at the National Center for Sustainable Transportation, headquartered at the University of California, Davis, worked with government and non-profit partners to plan, launch, and evaluate an innovative transportation program for rural residents: a non-profit, electric carsharing service to provide affordable, clean mobility to communities in California’s San Joaquin Valley.