3 ms·

If one Uber car can take 2 people to and from work each day then that should free up 1 parking spot for the Uber and 1 more parking spot can be reclaimed for ot

If one Uber car can take 2 people to and from work each day then that should free up 1 parking spot for the Uber and 1 more parking spot can be reclaimed for other use. :)

Schroedingersat 5y ago
Not if they were the two people catching a bus that made running the bus every 15 mins rather than every 30mins viable, so now 40 people stopped using transit and 20 of them drive and take a park each. Then this slowed two other bus routes, and so on. Induced demand and congestion are complex. A taxi is probably better than a car, but neither cars or taxis have enough capacity to viably challenge congestion. You need mass transit that runs frequently and isn't stuck behind cars.
- seanmcdirmid 5y ago
  Taxis and ubers are great if you take mass transit but need a back up. Otherwise, you might always be stuck with your car because you lack confidence that you will always be able to take the bus or metro.
  - Schroedingersat 5y ago
    Huh, I think this is actually a case where uber's model is a net good rather than just extractive. There's still congestion to deal with, but a bunch of people whose main work has no set hours who can go 'it's raining, time to taxi some people who don't want to walk or cycle today' synergises well with active transport and transit.
robotastronaut 5y ago
The issue is not parking. The issue is that these cars remain on the road all day, creating congestion. Commuters are only clogging the roads during commutes. Thus “rush hour.”
- tshaddox 5y ago
  Then I dare say there is not only one issue. Parking is also a huge disaster in many dense cities (and probably also results in a bunch of wasted driving time circling for parking!).
  - stouset 5y ago
    So then you make more parking which begets yet more cars. Cities already have absolutely massive amounts of their real estate dedicated to parking. The answer to this problem is not and never will be “more of the stuff that’s causing the problem”.
- Dylan16807 5y ago
  Now we've gone in a circle. The question was why they stay on the road when they're not delivering someone. If the issue isn't lack of parking, what is it?
  - analog31 5y ago
    The question is, what kind of parking? A lot of the available parking is in structures that cost to park in, and involve some overhead getting in and out, such as getting through a gate, wandering around the structure for an available space, etc. Not conducive to being used by an Uber or cabbie to wait for a call to go pick someone up. Finding on-street parking is much more dicey. The commuter and residential parking doesn't free up for Uber drivers if it's not being used by its primary customers. Disclosure: Extrapolating from how it works in my town.
    - Dylan16807 5y ago
      Sure, so then the problem is parking, but it's the type and not the amount.
      - deleted 5y ago
        [deleted]

If one Uber car can take 2 people to and from work each day then that should free up 1 parking spot for the Uber and 1 more parking spot can be reclaimed for other use. :)

Schroedingersat 5y ago

Not if they were the two people catching a bus that made running the bus every 15 mins rather than every 30mins viable, so now 40 people stopped using transit and 20 of them drive and take a park each. Then this slowed two other bus routes, and so on. Induced demand and congestion are complex. A taxi is probably better than a car, but neither cars or taxis have enough capacity to viably challenge congestion. You need mass transit that runs frequently and isn't stuck behind cars.

seanmcdirmid 5y ago
Taxis and ubers are great if you take mass transit but need a back up. Otherwise, you might always be stuck with your car because you lack confidence that you will always be able to take the bus or metro.
- Schroedingersat 5y ago
  Huh, I think this is actually a case where uber's model is a net good rather than just extractive. There's still congestion to deal with, but a bunch of people whose main work has no set hours who can go 'it's raining, time to taxi some people who don't want to walk or cycle today' synergises well with active transport and transit.

robotastronaut 5y ago

The issue is not parking. The issue is that these cars remain on the road all day, creating congestion. Commuters are only clogging the roads during commutes. Thus “rush hour.”

tshaddox 5y ago
Then I dare say there is not only one issue. Parking is also a huge disaster in many dense cities (and probably also results in a bunch of wasted driving time circling for parking!).
- stouset 5y ago
  So then you make more parking which begets yet more cars. Cities already have absolutely massive amounts of their real estate dedicated to parking. The answer to this problem is not and never will be “more of the stuff that’s causing the problem”.
Dylan16807 5y ago
Now we've gone in a circle. The question was why they stay on the road when they're not delivering someone. If the issue isn't lack of parking, what is it?
- analog31 5y ago
  The question is, what kind of parking? A lot of the available parking is in structures that cost to park in, and involve some overhead getting in and out, such as getting through a gate, wandering around the structure for an available space, etc. Not conducive to being used by an Uber or cabbie to wait for a call to go pick someone up. Finding on-street parking is much more dicey. The commuter and residential parking doesn't free up for Uber drivers if it's not being used by its primary customers. Disclosure: Extrapolating from how it works in my town.
  - Dylan16807 5y ago
    Sure, so then the problem is parking, but it's the type and not the amount.
    - deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]