A landscape that was once dominated by taxis and then gave way to mobile ride-hailing companies like Uber and Lyft (aka transportation network companies, or TNCs), appears to be taking on a new hybrid form as some taxi companies take cues from their modern competitors and even figure out how to partner with them.
TNCs
Does Uber impact bike-share usage? Evidence from a natural experiment in Budapest
Significant research has gone into understanding the relationships between different urban transportation options and whether they support or compete with each other. It seems reasonable to think ride-hailing services like Uber might compete with bike sharing in urban areas, but findings from a recent study in Budapest suggest the opposite.
Findings from Toronto: Sticks and carrots for TNCs
We have a lot of evidence that venture capital-subsidized transportation network companies are cannibalizing transit and driving up VMT. Now a new study of this phenomenon examines the patterns of TNC trip making and suggests a system of taxes and subsidies in response. The paper, which employs data from a 2016 personal transportation survey, finds that TNC trips that could reasonably be taken on transit tend to occur during peak hours and for non-work trip purposes. Given policy concerns for maintaining transit ridership and reducing auto congestion and emissions, the authors suggest penalizing these TNC trips with higher fees.
TRB provides playbook to TNC-transit partnerships
Transit agencies have increasingly partnered with transportation network companies, such as Uber and Lyft, to supplement fixed-route services. TNCs are used to extend service to less-dense areas of a community, provide first- and last-mile connections, operate on weekends or evenings, and for paratransit services. Until now, transit agencies have not had guidelines for the best way to set up these partnerships. A new TRB publication provides this guidance while outlining options based on the goals of both TNCs and transit agencies.
More evidence that TNCs are clogging downtown streets (and what NYC is doing about it)
In August, Uber and Lyft jointly released an analysis conducted by Fehr & Peers examining how their vehicles are contributing to VMT in six major cities: Boston, Chicago, L.A., San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, D.C. The study found that Uber and Lyft vehicles account for just 1-3 percent of total VMT in the metro regions. However, they are contributing a significantly larger share in the core counties of several of these regions.
Chicago opens TNC data to the public
Getting data from transportation network companies for planning and other purposes has been a challenge. Agencies want to understand where TNCs are operating in order to address curb management, congestion, and transit-cannibalization issues. But TNCs have viewed such data as proprietary and have been reluctant to share. Chicago, however, has an advantage over many cities in this area, due to its per-ride TNC tax established four years ago. Now the city has made that data public.
Chicago opens TNC data to the public
Getting data from transportation network companies for planning and other purposes has been a challenge. Agencies want to understand where TNCs are operating in order to address curb management, congestion, and transit-cannibalization issues. But TNCs have viewed such data as proprietary and have been reluctant to share. Chicago, however, has an advantage over many cities in this area, due to its per-ride TNC tax established four years ago. Now the city has made that data public.
Larger cities offering TNC trips to improve transit options
As transit ridership continues to fall in urban areas nationwide, several cities are turning to an unlikely ally to make transit service more appealing and convenient: TNCs. Although in the past smaller cities with less robust transit have used TNCs to fill in the gaps, larger cities are now jumping on board.
Parking, ride-hailing, and shifting traveler needs
According to a new study out of Denver, one-quarter of ride-hailing trips replace driving, which reduces the need for parking, particularly at specific land uses. Difficulty parking is also a key reason people are shifting to ride-hailing services, which suggests that places where parking is most difficult or expensive can expect a shift in demand to curbside pickup and drop off.
Lyft tests mobility as a service across major U.S. cities
The move toward “mobility as a service” took a step forward last week when Lyft expanded a pilot program, for people who agree not to drive a private car, to dozens of cities. The “Ditch Your Car Challenge” program, initially offered just in Chicago but now in 35 additional cities, offers to provide credits for Lyft, transit, bike share, scooter share, and car share modes. The modes vary by city, but the credits are substantial in all of them. Fifty to 100 participants will be selected in each city.