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One of the main costs is labor. Another is fuel. Get rid of labor and if fuel gets cheaper (I assume electricity, because it can come from more sources than gas

One of the main costs is labor. Another is fuel. Get rid of labor and if fuel gets cheaper (I assume electricity, because it can come from more sources than gas, will get cheaper over time), then I assume these services will be cheaper. Plus, car ownership is not that cheap either.

dinkumthinkum 4y ago
Car ownership is a lot cheaper than Uber. It’s not even a question. You could buy an overpriced car that you can’t afford with a high interest rate and it would still be much cheaper. I think you need to go back to first principles on this one.
- dtgriscom 4y ago
  > Car ownership is a lot cheaper than Uber. It’s not even a question. Well, yes it is. Cars are expensive: lease ($200+/month), maintenance ($100/mo), gas ($50/mo), insurance ($120/month), garage ($200/month). WAG of $670/month. That's 15 to 40 short-ish Uber rides/month. Commute an hour each way every day, and have free parking? Buy that car. Have it available for occasional trips to the grocery store? Uber is almost certainly cheaper. And, if autonomous taxis become real then the price will go down even further.
  - aidenn0 4y ago
    Leasing a car is the most expensive way to own a car (short of buying a new one every 3 years). Of course if you're paying $200/mo. for parking you can probably afford it. In much of the country parking is indirectly subsidized with zoning laws. This is all moot because, if driving places gets cheaper, traffic will get worse, which was the original point.
    - dinkumthinkum 4y ago
      Sone companies in the United States have fancy things like parking lots. In fact, most places people work have parking lots that are free.
      - aidenn0 4y ago
        I assume gp was talking about parking at home, not at work
  - dinkumthinkum 4y ago
    What? Your math is still not working out. Are you one of the lucky that have $1 Uber rides or something? 40 rides? You make 40 trips a month? Really? Try more like $40 a day just to start and that’s with no kids. At some point we have to talk about reality if we are making claims. Also, once you pay a car off (perhaps you buy it with cash), how does this math to continue to work out?
- jimkleiber 4y ago
  Car ownership may be cheaper based on where one lives. One lives in a rural area and commutes everyday to a suburb where parking is free? Probably much cheaper than taking an Uber. Live in a city where parking is $40 per day and a parking space at an apartment is $500/month and work from home? Uber may be significantly cheaper than owning a car. If we go to first principles, I think what would matter the most is at least how often someone uses a car, how one uses it, and where one lives, to determine whether ownership or renting (Uber is just very short-term rental with a driver included, no?) is cheaper in total cost.
- ninkendo 4y ago
  Let’s say I use a car once a year. Just how would owning a car be cheaper than getting an uber that one time per year? Now do the same math for driving 5 times a day. Do you see why you can’t just say “Car ownership is cheaper than Uber”, unqualified?
  - dinkumthinkum 4y ago
    Really? … Well, that is just an excellent point …

dinkumthinkum 4y ago

Car ownership is a lot cheaper than Uber. It’s not even a question. You could buy an overpriced car that you can’t afford with a high interest rate and it would still be much cheaper. I think you need to go back to first principles on this one.

dtgriscom 4y ago
> Car ownership is a lot cheaper than Uber. It’s not even a question. Well, yes it is. Cars are expensive: lease ($200+/month), maintenance ($100/mo), gas ($50/mo), insurance ($120/month), garage ($200/month). WAG of $670/month. That's 15 to 40 short-ish Uber rides/month. Commute an hour each way every day, and have free parking? Buy that car. Have it available for occasional trips to the grocery store? Uber is almost certainly cheaper. And, if autonomous taxis become real then the price will go down even further.
- aidenn0 4y ago
  Leasing a car is the most expensive way to own a car (short of buying a new one every 3 years). Of course if you're paying $200/mo. for parking you can probably afford it. In much of the country parking is indirectly subsidized with zoning laws. This is all moot because, if driving places gets cheaper, traffic will get worse, which was the original point.
  - dinkumthinkum 4y ago
    Sone companies in the United States have fancy things like parking lots. In fact, most places people work have parking lots that are free.
    - aidenn0 4y ago
      I assume gp was talking about parking at home, not at work
- dinkumthinkum 4y ago
  What? Your math is still not working out. Are you one of the lucky that have $1 Uber rides or something? 40 rides? You make 40 trips a month? Really? Try more like $40 a day just to start and that’s with no kids. At some point we have to talk about reality if we are making claims. Also, once you pay a car off (perhaps you buy it with cash), how does this math to continue to work out?
jimkleiber 4y ago
Car ownership may be cheaper based on where one lives. One lives in a rural area and commutes everyday to a suburb where parking is free? Probably much cheaper than taking an Uber. Live in a city where parking is $40 per day and a parking space at an apartment is $500/month and work from home? Uber may be significantly cheaper than owning a car. If we go to first principles, I think what would matter the most is at least how often someone uses a car, how one uses it, and where one lives, to determine whether ownership or renting (Uber is just very short-term rental with a driver included, no?) is cheaper in total cost.
ninkendo 4y ago
Let’s say I use a car once a year. Just how would owning a car be cheaper than getting an uber that one time per year? Now do the same math for driving 5 times a day. Do you see why you can’t just say “Car ownership is cheaper than Uber”, unqualified?
- dinkumthinkum 4y ago
  Really? … Well, that is just an excellent point …