A Grid-Based Framework for E-Scooter Demand Representation and Temporal Input Design for Deep Learning: Evidence from Austin, Texas

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Sahnoon, Mohammad, Demissie, Merkebe Getachew, Souza, Roberto
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Sahnoon, Mohammad
Demissie, Merkebe Getachew
Souza, Roberto
author_facet Sahnoon, Mohammad
Demissie, Merkebe Getachew
Souza, Roberto
contents Despite progress in deep learning for shared micromobility demand prediction, the systematic design and statistical validation of temporal input structures remain underexplored. Temporal features are often selected heuristically, even though historical demand strongly affects model performance and generalizability. This paper introduces a reproducible data-processing pipeline and a statistically grounded method for designing temporal input structures for image-to-image demand prediction. Using large-scale e-scooter data from Austin, Texas, we build a grid-based spatiotemporal dataset by converting trip records into hourly pickup and dropoff demand images. The pipeline includes trip filtering, mapping Census Tracts to spatial locations, grid construction, demand aggregation, and creation of a global activity mask that limits evaluation to historically active areas. This representation supports consistent spatial learning while preserving demand patterns. We then introduce a combined correlation- and error-based procedure to identify informative historical inputs. Optimal temporal depth is selected through an ablation study using a baseline UNET model with paired non-parametric tests and Holm correction. The resulting temporal structures capture short-term persistence as well as daily and weekly cycles. Compared with adjacent-hour and fixed-period baselines, the proposed design reduces mean squared error by up to 37 percent for next-hour prediction and 35 percent for next-24-hour prediction. These results highlight the value of principled dataset construction and statistically validated temporal input design for spatiotemporal micromobility demand prediction.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_13609
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle A Grid-Based Framework for E-Scooter Demand Representation and Temporal Input Design for Deep Learning: Evidence from Austin, Texas
Sahnoon, Mohammad
Demissie, Merkebe Getachew
Souza, Roberto
Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition
Despite progress in deep learning for shared micromobility demand prediction, the systematic design and statistical validation of temporal input structures remain underexplored. Temporal features are often selected heuristically, even though historical demand strongly affects model performance and generalizability. This paper introduces a reproducible data-processing pipeline and a statistically grounded method for designing temporal input structures for image-to-image demand prediction. Using large-scale e-scooter data from Austin, Texas, we build a grid-based spatiotemporal dataset by converting trip records into hourly pickup and dropoff demand images. The pipeline includes trip filtering, mapping Census Tracts to spatial locations, grid construction, demand aggregation, and creation of a global activity mask that limits evaluation to historically active areas. This representation supports consistent spatial learning while preserving demand patterns. We then introduce a combined correlation- and error-based procedure to identify informative historical inputs. Optimal temporal depth is selected through an ablation study using a baseline UNET model with paired non-parametric tests and Holm correction. The resulting temporal structures capture short-term persistence as well as daily and weekly cycles. Compared with adjacent-hour and fixed-period baselines, the proposed design reduces mean squared error by up to 37 percent for next-hour prediction and 35 percent for next-24-hour prediction. These results highlight the value of principled dataset construction and statistically validated temporal input design for spatiotemporal micromobility demand prediction.
title A Grid-Based Framework for E-Scooter Demand Representation and Temporal Input Design for Deep Learning: Evidence from Austin, Texas
topic Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.13609