Hybridizing shared mobility: Collaborative approaches between users, public institutions, and markets

This paper advances the concept of Collaborative Shared Mobility (CSM) to systematize fragmented debates on unconventional shared mobility initiatives. Drawing on a systematic literature review, and moving beyond labels such as peer-to-peer, community-based, or informal sharing, CSM is defined as a model in which shared mobility provision is treated as a collective good sustained through structured collaboration among participants, overlap between users and providers, and the emergence of forms of community governance. The paper then conceptualizes hybridization as the process through which collaborative arrangements can become organizationally integrated with public and/or market actors, shaping relational structures that facilitate the mutual exchange of resources and the production of innovation supporting the establishment of CSM initiatives. This process, including the reasons behind its emergence, and its potential and limitations, is examined through two CSM schemes in Italy that illustrate different hybrid configurations. The cases suggest that the durability of CSM depends on the capacity to sustain collaborative governance, shared responsibilities, and knowledge exchange over time, beyond the initial co-design phase.