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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

#221

Post by verylittlemeat »

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's just a hassle.

For you the cost in time and money is worth it. For other people like myself it's just not. I know "virtue signaling" is the hot new way to disagree with people on the internet but you should use it in a more discriminating manner.

Getting a permit is not free in terms of time or money. Getting a license takes even MORE time (pointless outdated mandatory education classes) and MORE money (lessons). That's not even considering taking the written and driving tests themselves. Or going to the DMV.

Yeah I know, all of this is super easy, look at the kind of people who drive, how hard could it be? But you know what I could be doing with my TIME and with my MONEY instead? All the things I want to do that I value more than driving.

Obviously this thinking is just amplified when you take into consideration gas/insurance/maintenance. And this doesn't even get into the psychological impact of driving a car. You know what one of my favorite things in the world is? Reading a book on my 2 hour commute home on the train. My sister just recently got her license and I can honestly say (no virtue signaling I promise) that it has taken a psychological toll on her. She would admit herself that being a driver has made her a more angry and on edge person than she was before.

Also it's pretty rosy speculation to suggest access to national parks has anything to do with motivation for car ownership. I think it's safe to say that can be covered almost entirely by "I need it for my job."

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

#222

Post by semi-extrinsic »

milesokeefe wrote: post #217
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…

You pay $700/year for insurance as a 25 year old?

Depends on your car, they said it's a beater. Of course an insurance company will give you significant price reduction if you have, say, a late 90s Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic with a 80 hp engine, as compared to something more modern and fun with twice the power.

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

#223

Post by conanbatt »

clairity wrote: post #38

i've found the value proposition of lyft/uber less compelling over time. typically i can either (1) take a bus or train or (2) take a lyft line (or uber pool, if it's much cheaper for some reason--i don't mind uber paying part of my trip). but because my trips are often 2-3 miles or less, the time savings of a lyft is taken up by (1) pickup time, (2) driver confusion/mistakes, (3) poor driver routing due to not knowi…

A lyft line at 10pm on a sunday cost me 5.30 U$S. I did not have a direct bus from those two locations, and we were two people.

Its a lesson on basic microeconomics. If its cheaper, more people will use it. And it is now way cheaper than cabs.

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

#224

Post by throwaway1X2 »

jacquesm wrote: post #202
j2bax wrote: post #191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One thing I've wondered is how people deal with car seats with Uber/Lyft/Taxi's. Do they carry their own with them and take the time to install it and uninstall it? Do you just take the bus and not worry about a car seat?

Taxi's are usually exempt, Uber will provide a car seat for a surcharge of $10 in some locations, not sure about Lyft.

> Taxi's are usually exempt

From local laws. From physical laws they are not. As a kid long time ago, I was sitting in a Fiat 124 when a bus driver wasn't paying attention to the road ahead and hit the stationary car on intersection in full city speed, thankfully it was direct hit from behind and there was nothing in front of the car, so there were no serious and only some very light injuries, but it was ugly.

But I cannot image having a kid sitting freely in a lap nowadays just because the car in question is exempt from regulations. There doesn't even have to be a collision, emergency braking (either human or autonomous) is enough to throw the kid off against the car interior and sustain injuries (yep, had that too in the old no-rear-seat-belt-times when an ambulance without siren appeared oncoming wrong way, almost bit my tongue off).

Don't use restraint systems just when they are required by regulations. And especially in nowadays tenfold traffic.

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

#225

Post by semi-extrinsic »

matthewowen wrote: post #197
shafyy wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why not just get the insurance on top when renting to cap your liability?

there are road conditions you cannot drive in without snow chains, and rental companies don't allow you to attach chains. these road conditions are not uncommon if you're going skiing. effectively there are moderately common road/condition combinations that you cannot drive in a rental car.

> there are road conditions you cannot drive in without snow chains

Where is this? I live in northern part of Scandinavia, and we manage just fine with normal winter tires. Snow chains are pretty much only for semi trucks. Most people even use studless winter tires these days.

And of course rental cars have winter tires in the winter season, anything else would be illegal.

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

#226

Post by kazinator »

jgust wrote: post #182
sebleon wrote: post #162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Outdoor Activities Renting a car (via Getaround, Zipar) on weekends can be cost effective

I don't find Zipcar all that affordable except for the very shortest of trips (read: < 3 hours). Anything over that and you're better off renting a vehicle for the day through traditional routes.

I can get a car from AVIS for $30 to $40 CAD per day (not including gas: typically that is another $10-12 or so).

I have a membership in a car share, but I rarely bother with it for the above reason.

For an hour or two or something, it's good.

Most recently used it for trips to emergency. I mean, the co-op car is out there on the street, walking distance, whereas you need a reservation for the rental car, can only get it during the opening hours, from an outfit that is several miles away.

Yet, there is no guarantee that the share cars will be there for emergencies; it's just luck. If it's 3 a.m. the odds are excellent. 3 p.m. on a Saturday; not so good.

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

#227

Post by [deleted] »

ihaveajob wrote: post #176
d4mi3n wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm in a similar situation, but from what I gather lifestyle factors heavily into the "do I need/want a car" equation. Kids, for example, usually mandate a car. Outdoor activities or any hobby that requires you haul around a lot of gear can also make having your own transportation a lot more appealing.

We do have a car and a toddler. The car sits idle most days, maybe once a week we get on it to go somewhere where it's inconvenient by bike or transit. For his first year we didn't have a car. This is in SF and Berkeley. A lot of people, even those with kids, could perfectly ditch their cars, rent occasionally and come out ahead in terms of costs (and lifestyle).

[deleted]

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

#228

Post by milesokeefe »

semi-extrinsic wrote: post #222
milesokeefe wrote: post #217

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You pay $700/year for insurance as a 25 year old?

Depends on your car, they said it's a beater. Of course an insurance company will give you significant price reduction if you have, say, a late 90s Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic with a 80 hp engine, as compared to something more modern and fun with twice the power.

I know that the sportiness and novelty of a car drives up the insurance price but it doesn't seem to as much as I thought, my friend recently got a new WRX and pays very very little in insurance for it considering he's a 22 year old male.

But yeah it being a beater makes sense, I just got quotes for a 1981 Honda Civic in Seattle and some are even less than $700/year.

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

#229

Post by vlozko »

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…

I did specify being close to the city being a factor in how doable it is to go without a car. And even then, there are limiting factors that make car ownership worthwhile. Things like: 1. Monthly Costo/BJs run (with family in tow) 2. Visiting family that's over an hour away and not along any rail/bus line. 3. You live in a pretty remote area.

Essentially, I'm saying that there are life choices and/or criteria met that makes lack of car ownership feasible. But since so many Americans live in the suburbs without easy access to public transportation, car ownership just makes the best sense for some people.

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

#230

Post by simulate »

j2bax wrote: post #191
ihaveajob wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We do have a car and a toddler. The car sits idle most days, maybe once a week we get on it to go somewhere where it's inconvenient by bike or transit. For his first year we didn't have a car. This is in SF and Berkeley. A lot of people, even those with kids, could perfectly ditch their cars, rent occasionally and come out ahead in terms of costs (and lifestyle).

One thing I've wondered is how people deal with car seats with Uber/Lyft/Taxi's. Do they carry their own with them and take the time to install it and uninstall it? Do you just take the bus and not worry about a car seat?

When your kids are a bit older you can use an inflatable seat like this: https://www.bubblebum.co/us/ Easy to carry in a backpack.
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