Will Lyft and Uber's Shared-Ride Service Hurt Public Transit?

An anonymous reader writes Lyft and Uber have already undercut the price of a taxi in most markets, but with this new service, both are now taking aim at public transit systems. By attempting to offer a viable alternative to the bus and metro, Lyft and Uber are offering new options to consumers in a space where few existed before. As Timothy Lee writes at Vox, "Until recently, there weren't many services in this 'in between' category. If you were going to the airport, you could get a shared-ride van. And some urban areas had dollar vans. But these were limited services in niche markets." If you're traveling with multiple people over short distances, Lyft Line and UberPool can be quite affordable, but it's still not cheap enough.

Comments

No.

[xevioso]

It will not. It's much cheaper to take public transportation in most cities; the only time it would make sense would be on longer trips, because you are saving alot of time by taking Lyft or Uber, but you sure the hell aren't saving money.

And it's much easier to find a cab in San Francisco nowadays, not only because they are having to compete with rideshares, but they actually will notice you now when you wave a hand. So why not take a cab instead of Uber and Lyft?

No

[Anonymous Coward]

Let me know when either of these can get me from the Chicago Surbs to Downtown Chicago (45 miles) for under $10.

Or from the far north part of the city to the south part (25-30 miles) with 4 lights per mile for $2.50

Wrong Question

[Anonymous Coward]

The only question that matters: Will they improve transportation?

Competition is a bitch; a government never likes it.

Not Sharing

[jklovanc]

Can we please stop calling it "ride sharing"? It is no more ride sharing that a grocery store is "food sharing".

should be banned or regulated

[goombah99]

Lyft and Uber drivers should have to follow the same not-free regs as taxi drivers. things like displaying a hack lic, certification of insurance or bonding, and penalties for systematic race discrimination are things that taxi drivers and their companies are required to follow. Undercutting these is not a good idea.

Re:should be banned or regulated

[jbengt]

You are not correct.
My home insurance will cover accidents that visitors have on my property, but will not cover customers if I'm using it as a place of business - that'd be a whole different level of risk for the insurance company.
Similarly, insuring a taxi driver is a much larger risk for an insurance company than insuring a private driver, even for the same number of miles.
Why should I, as a private driver, pay for the same insurance that covers the larger risks of taxi drivers?

Re:It's only worth it

[mysidia]

Some cities have quite nice and convenient public transit, and it can be even better if you live and work in the right places.

Yes, and they're all outside the United States. :-)

Re:It's only worth it

[mister_playboy]

I have read that half of the USA's total daily public transportation ridership is found in a single city... New York City

This one factoid portrays our public transport situation very well...

Your ancient rules make little sense

[SuperKendall]

things like displaying a hack lic,

This makes no sense. Remember they are not sitting there waiting for you to get in - you summon them via app which automatically means they have been vetted by the service, and you have info about them beforehand before you even selected them.

Perhaps taxi drivers should start with regulations requiring you to be able to see reviews from past customers?

certification of insurance or bonding

Again - all taken care of or else they would not be on the service.

penalties for systematic race discrimination

They come and pick you up. It's funny you bring this up with zero evidence of this being a problem, while we know cabs do this from time to time. If you've not solved it for cabs forget about solving it for Uber.

Undercutting these is not a good idea.

None of that is undercut. Only price, convenience, shiftiness of drivers, and car quality are undercut (or enhanced).