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This seems like a huge impact. Not sure how they came up with that number (I'm guessing customer surveys, so it's probably not that accurate). How does this cha

by shafyy 9y ago

This seems like a huge impact. Not sure how they came up with that number (I'm guessing customer surveys, so it's probably not that accurate). How does this change the debate that ride-sharing congests up cities?

Retric 9y ago
Any ride sharing trip is going to be Driver Start > Pickup > Drop-off which is by necessity longer than pickup > drop-off. The only possible benefit is if people take public transit more or take fewer trips, which is not something you can see from ride sharing numbers.
- handbanana 9y ago
  Ride sharing drivers can pick up in the area they drop-off, though
  - revelation 9y ago
    Triangle inequality still holds, sorry to say It only makes sense if they are transporting two or more people that would otherwise have used two or more vehicles. But I think that kind of rideshare system is the absolute minority of Uber and Lyft rides.
    - pishpash 9y ago
      Yes, the reduction is over vehicles (fewer unique vehicles), not vehicle miles.
    - handbanana 9y ago
      Perhaps, but with ride sharing you're less likely to make more stops, preferring to get to your destination in one continuous trip. And if you ditch your car in favour of ride sharing, then you're likely to make less trips overall. You'll think twice before driving somewhere you could otherwise walk, more so than if you owned a car. And you're less likely to make impulse trips that can be avoided (to get a chocolate bar you're craving or something else pointless). At least, I'd imagine that's the case - as there is the additional time of hailing a ride with one of these services and a more measurable cost to it.
- JumpCrisscross 9y ago
  > Any ride sharing trip is going to be Driver Start > Pickup > Drop-off which is by necessity longer than pickup > drop-of You forgot "circling for twenty minutes searching for parking." Include the parking footprint of private cars and I think ridesharing comes out ahead.
  - Retric 9y ago
    That's only relevant in places limited to street level parking. The general case is driving to a parking lot/garage which could make the trip shorter or longer depending on where it's located relative to your destination. You might spend more time driving in a garage, but that does not impact street level congestion compared to all those extra Miles drivers add going to pick you up. As to density, cars parked in a garage take up vastly less land than than moving cars on a road as they stack vertically and need less space around each other.
    - shafyy 9y ago
      Do you have any data on street level vs fixed garage parking? Owning fewer vehicles also frees up space on street level...
      - Retric 9y ago
        It depends on the city. However, for places like NYC unassigned street level parking is a tiny fraction of overall parking.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- martinald 9y ago
  Though it seems to be doing the opposite. In London where car ownership is low (at least in inner London) it seems to be taking share from public transit. Nearly 100k uber/minicab drivers have been added and bus ridership has collapsed. A) from less usage because of Uber B) because all these extra taxis have caused mass congestion which means buses are unbelievably slow compared to even a few years ago
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- taoistextremist 9y ago
  I think there's an argument to be made that ride sharing apps means people have an easier time relying on public transit, though, given they can use the apps to fill in gaps, making the leap from owning a car easier.

by shafyy 9y ago

Retric 9y ago

Any ride sharing trip is going to be Driver Start > Pickup > Drop-off which is by necessity longer than pickup > drop-off. The only possible benefit is if people take public transit more or take fewer trips, which is not something you can see from ride sharing numbers.

handbanana 9y ago
Ride sharing drivers can pick up in the area they drop-off, though
- revelation 9y ago
  Triangle inequality still holds, sorry to say It only makes sense if they are transporting two or more people that would otherwise have used two or more vehicles. But I think that kind of rideshare system is the absolute minority of Uber and Lyft rides.
  - pishpash 9y ago
    Yes, the reduction is over vehicles (fewer unique vehicles), not vehicle miles.
  - handbanana 9y ago
    Perhaps, but with ride sharing you're less likely to make more stops, preferring to get to your destination in one continuous trip. And if you ditch your car in favour of ride sharing, then you're likely to make less trips overall. You'll think twice before driving somewhere you could otherwise walk, more so than if you owned a car. And you're less likely to make impulse trips that can be avoided (to get a chocolate bar you're craving or something else pointless). At least, I'd imagine that's the case - as there is the additional time of hailing a ride with one of these services and a more measurable cost to it.
JumpCrisscross 9y ago
> Any ride sharing trip is going to be Driver Start > Pickup > Drop-off which is by necessity longer than pickup > drop-of You forgot "circling for twenty minutes searching for parking." Include the parking footprint of private cars and I think ridesharing comes out ahead.
- Retric 9y ago
  That's only relevant in places limited to street level parking. The general case is driving to a parking lot/garage which could make the trip shorter or longer depending on where it's located relative to your destination. You might spend more time driving in a garage, but that does not impact street level congestion compared to all those extra Miles drivers add going to pick you up. As to density, cars parked in a garage take up vastly less land than than moving cars on a road as they stack vertically and need less space around each other.
  - shafyy 9y ago
    Do you have any data on street level vs fixed garage parking? Owning fewer vehicles also frees up space on street level...
    - Retric 9y ago
      It depends on the city. However, for places like NYC unassigned street level parking is a tiny fraction of overall parking.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
martinald 9y ago
Though it seems to be doing the opposite. In London where car ownership is low (at least in inner London) it seems to be taking share from public transit. Nearly 100k uber/minicab drivers have been added and bus ridership has collapsed. A) from less usage because of Uber B) because all these extra taxis have caused mass congestion which means buses are unbelievably slow compared to even a few years ago
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
taoistextremist 9y ago
I think there's an argument to be made that ride sharing apps means people have an easier time relying on public transit, though, given they can use the apps to fill in gaps, making the leap from owning a car easier.