Multiple Studies Find Ride-Hailing Contributes to Congestion and Transit Losses
Surveys on ride-hailing conducted by regional planning agencies, academic institutions, and public transit agencies throughout the U.S. reviewed by the Associated Press largely led to the same conclusion: more traffic and reduced use of transit.
One of the most comprehensive studies on ride-hailing which surveyed 4,000 users in seven major metropolitan areas was released last October by UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS) …
The study “found that a large portion of travelers are substituting ride-hailing in place of public transit, biking, and walking trips, or would not have made the trips at all,” wrote Clewlow
A ridership study [pdf] also released last October by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority … found that “30% of passengers across all modes report that using [ride-hailing] services reduces their use of the MBTA.”
The two studies were among many reviewed by Steve LeBlanc of the Associated Press on Feb. 25. All but one conducted by Seattle-based firm INRIX that evaluated traffic congestion in London found transportation network companies (TNCs) contributing to traffic congestion and transit ridership reductions.
“The emerging consensus is that ride-sharing (is) increasing congestion,” said Christo Wilson, a professor of computer science at Boston’s Northeastern University who has analyzed Uber’s surge pricing.
Obviously it’s too cheap.
But it also tells you that people value convenience, time saved AND comfort over price !
I had the same thought yesterday about Car2Go and Evo: while it may reduce car ownership it. Doesn’t reduce cars on the road driving around, as without a shared car we would have taken a bus back after a long walk.
I took an airport shuttle from Fort Lauderdale airport to our hotel and the shuttle was almost empty. The driver was saying that Uber has killed the airport shuttle and taxi business, so this is not surprising to me.
Ride hailing reduces the need to own a car. Unlimited mileage insurance & road tax pricing policies make the incremental cost of driving below the cost of a transit pass .
Again, it shows people prefer convenience and time saved over price ! When will MetroVan get Uber? How many vehicles will TransLink have in their Iber fleet ? How many marginal routes will they close immediately, or over three years ?
Maybe they should only allowed Uber and Lyft after midnight, so I don’t have to pay 50$ to take a taxi home after I miss the last skytrain
If congestion charges are properly set congestion will ease. I doubt it though. It will be far too tepid and far too few cars will come off the road.
Interesting article on a town that went with Uber instead of transit:
The town of Innisfil, Ont., estimates an experimental transit partnership with Uber is saving more than $8 million per year compared to what an equivalent door-to-door bus service would cost.
Innisfil turned to the ride-hailing company last year as an alternative to a traditional public transit system, after a study determined traditional transit would be too expensive and inefficient to serve the community north of Toronto..
http://theprovince.com/news/canada/innisfil-says-uber-transit-partnership-is-saving-it-8m-per-year/wcm/47b53711-1e64-4ced-8856-5f59c023e592