Competition of ridesharing autonomous vehicles: a stated preference analysis of air and ground mobility alternatives

This study contributes empirical evidence on competition among Autonomous Air Taxis (AATs), Autonomous Taxis (ATs), and Autonomous Buses (ABs). An offline survey including a stated choice (SC) experiment and personal attitude statements was conducted. Observations from 561 residents of Shanghai, China were collected. A latent class hybrid choice model was developed and estimated. The estimation results show that personal attitudes and heterogeneous preferences significantly affect the acceptance of the AV modes. Approximately 80.13% of respondents with low incomes and unstable employment are highly sensitive to the costs and travel times of ATs and AATs. About 19.87% of respondents who have high incomes and stable work are easily influenced by choices of others in their social networks. Moreover, choice preferences for AVs are significantly influenced by personal attitudes toward AVs, such as perceived safety of autonomous taxis and a dislike of public transportation.