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Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

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Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#381

Post by LeifCarrotson »

smileysteve wrote: post #236
stephendedalus wrote: post #170

In 2017 I returned to America from living overseas. My mom passed away early in the year and I wanted nothing to do with shopping for a car, much less driving a car. So I just took Lyft to my new job until I had my feet under me and felt up to driving again. In the end I never felt up to driving full time. I now share my wife's car (we did get her a car eventually), but we only purchased the 1 car. We either ride in…

> Either way, "ride sharing" has definitely taken one more full time car off the road one more full time car out of the parking lot.

It's true that the same miles are still being accrued, just by a Lyft car rather than a personal car.

However, when multiple people use a lyft car throughout the day, it is more efficient than having each person own their own car. Maintenance, insurance, and the construction of the car itself are all shared.

Perhaps it's half a full time car off the road.

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#382

Post by usrusr »

jimmaswell wrote: post #241
usrusr wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tried becoming a car person once, ignoring all that math, just as a luxury. The cheapest old banger is more of a "luxury car" then a Lexus if you don't have much use for a car. Turns out it's impossible for me, cars just don't stay operational through sufficiently longs stretches of disuse.

My car sat for a year before I got it and it was fine. It depends on the car and conditions.

Much depends on what you do with the battery. Physically disconnecting goes a long way, trickle charge even further. But street parking and serious mothballing don't go well together, particularly when you never know ahead of time wether your next drive will be tomorrow or next year. There are cheap solar trickle chargers that supposedly solve the problem for street parking, but modern car electronics often require some rewiring to hook them up. In the end it's not an unsolvable problem, but a strong motivator to give in to reason and just take a rental when needed.

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#383

Post by jsemrau »

rimliu wrote: post #371
megy wrote: post #328

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So instead buy a car and add to pollution, thus helping to destroy the nature you covet so much? And that makes sense to you?

Yes, because that Lyft car you are using to get around does not pollute a bit.

Car companies assume that by 2030 they sell half the cars

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#384

Post by Neil44 »

vlozko wrote: post #39
brndnmtthws wrote: post #20

Automobile ownership is dumb, but ridesharing isn't the answer either. Cities need to invest in public infrastructure, especially fast efficient public transit. People should also rediscover the joy of human power (walk, bike, run).

That's the bubble mentality of someone who lives in the city and/or doesn't have a family. How about you try hauling a baby in a stroller, diaper bag, and two other kids to a metro train (if you're so lucky to have one close) and then onto a bus. Ride sharing doesn't solve those problems, either, especially since you'd be in need of carseats. So no, automobile ownership is not dumb. There's plenty of use cases where…

I was listening to a radio programme yesterday where they discussed the dominance of young white males in shaping tech and how that can exclude other demographics without them even being aware of it. That bubble mentality is exactly the issue. They often don't have the perspective and experience to realise that what seems completely tacit to them just does not apply universally. And they don't know that they don't know.

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#385

Post by pavel_lishin »

hycaria wrote: post #364
lhorie wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lifestyle plays a part in where and how you live though. Kids may not require a car in downtown Toronto, but all the nice kid-oriented programs are uptown, where you do need a car to get around. Similarly, living in SF with two kids, I don't technically _need_ a car since MUNI coverage is decent, but we have a fast-paced lifestyle: it's a heck more convenient to have a car when you are regularly going to costco, ikea…

Consuming less never enters the equation, does it ?

You try consuming less after you have a kid.

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#386

Post by blooo »

badpun wrote: post #375
thewhitetulip wrote: post #367

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand why every country/state/city doesn't have superb public transportation. I live in a city in India which has a pathetic public transportation system. The buses are irregular and you can't rely on it at all.

I've recently read that only something like 3% of Indian population pays any income taxes - that's probably one of major reasons.

In fact, around 3% file their tax returns. Under 2% actually pay tax (rest are in non-taxable income slabs)

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#387

Post by carlmr »

clw8 wrote: post #377
badpun wrote: post #375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've recently read that only something like 3% of Indian population pays any income taxes - that's probably one of major reasons.

What the actual fuck? Is this by design or do a billion people all manage to game the system?

I've been to India, and I'm quite sure nobody I met except maybe the hotels serving tourists, was paying taxes. Shops, restaurants, businesses all only accepted cash. And they also never give a receipt. So yeah, 3% sounds about right.

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#388

Post by carlmr »

Improvotter wrote: post #216
gglover wrote: post #201

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm a 25 year old with a beater car 5 miles from downtown Seattle. Here are my real numbers: Parking: For me the bus is around 10 minutes slower each way. I just take that most days. Home parking: Free on-street parking Gas: $40/month * 12 = $480 Registration: $200 (May be a bit higher now with ST3) Insurance: $700 Maintenance: $1000 sounds about right For around $2380 / year. Well worth it for the freedom it gives m…

Cause we're all giving numbers here. Let me give you my numbers for my bike. I rent my bike and got a train subscription. I pay about 50 EUR a year for my bike and 100 EUR a year for my train subscription. I have a car, but I'm not the one paying insurance on it anymore (passed on to other family member). The car was 5000 EUR used (Volkswagen Polo) which was bought 7-8 years ago and it was a 5 year old car back then.…

Where do you pay 100€ a year for train tickets? In my city (Germany) it's about 1000€ a year.

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#389

Post by carlmr »

ghaff wrote: post #169
kinkrtyavimoodh wrote: post #150

Not sure why so many people here are almost virtue signaling the act of not owning a drivers license. I agree—It's perfectly okay to not own a car if it doesn't make sense to your life situation. That being said, the ability to drive is nevertheless a useful skill and asset and at least in the United States, does not have a very high barrier to entry (for better or worse). There is so much in the United States that a…

It sort of blows my mind. I get that people have different interests and hobbies but the idea that people would live in San Francisco or Seattle and be "I'm fine with mostly just hanging around the city and looking at the mountains from here" is a bit hard for me to digest. And, as I said in another comment, renting a car has frequently been the obvious approach to get to places I need to get to on business trips.

Exactly. Seattle is lovely, if you get out on the weekend.

Re: Lyft says nearly 250K of its passengers ditched a personal car in 2017

#390

Post by carlmr »

kasey_junk wrote: post #48
vlozko wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's the bubble mentality of someone who lives in the city and/or doesn't have a family. How about you try hauling a baby in a stroller, diaper bag, and two other kids to a metro train (if you're so lucky to have one close) and then onto a bus. Ride sharing doesn't solve those problems, either, especially since you'd be in need of carseats. So no, automobile ownership is not dumb. There's plenty of use cases where…

That is a fairly normal and commonly solved problem all over the United States. Lots and lots of people who can't afford to own cars deal with this and worst as a matter of course. Making life easier for people who choose to not own cars, has positive impact for those who can't own cars (and not to even begin on reducing the negative externalities). For the record, I own a car but also frequently hauled a baby stroll…

>Making life easier for people who choose to not own cars, has positive impact for those who can't own cars (and not to even begin on reducing the negative externalities).

And people who drive cars. Because less congestion if there are half as many cars on the road.

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