The Green Ride: Bike-Sharing Platforms and Urban Carbon Reduction

Dai Yunhao, Wang Xiaoyun, Tong Xinchu*

School of Economics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China

Abstract: Can the sharing economy contribute to urban sustainability? This study explores this question using the staggered entry of bike-sharing platforms across Chinese cities as a quasi-natural experiment. Drawing on 2015-2017 city characteristics panel data and monthly CO2 emission records, we employ a staggered difference-in-differences (DID) model to assess the impact of bike-sharing on per capita urban CO2 emissions. The results show that bike-sharing platforms significantly cut emissions by replacing high-carbon transport and boosting public adoption of shared bikes. This effect is more potent in cities with less stringent environmental enforcement, more advanced digital economies, greater technological innovation, and where two platforms jointly entered. By elucidating the mechanisms underlying bike-sharing’s carbon-reduction potential, this study highlights its role in urban sustainability. It offers policy insights for leveraging shared mobility to reduce city carbon emissions.

Keywords: sharing economy; bike-sharing; green transition; CO2

JEL Classification Codes: Q51; Q53; R40

DOI: 10.19602/j.chinaeconomist.2026.01.05