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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

#371
post #328
post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

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.

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

#372
post #95
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…

What? Talk about "bubble mentality," this is the very definition of "white people problems." Kids take the bus all the time with their parents. My brother, sister,and I took the bus all the time with my mom or grandma or occasionally both when we were very young. Sometimes when we'd add in a few cousins too, then we'd be rolling 8+ deep. My parents car was always breaking down and my grandma never learned to drive so…

It's only non issue if your time is non issue.

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

#373
post #121

It's part of the reason I haven't bought a car. I'm in my mid 20s and didn't get my license in high school because insurance would have been too expensive (my parents wanted me to pay for it). I think driving is a good life skill so I got my license in my early 20s, but I still have zero desire to own a car. That said, I live in Seattle, where there is good public transportation. Here are my numbers: Parking (I work…

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.

Depends on where you live. Even with kids, you don't need a car in London. You can rent cars over the weekends. Hauling groceries is a PITA but with a good backpack, this is also solved. If you live in some place like Barbican, everything is around your doorstep, so no need to haul groceries. The downside - you pay higher rents. Outdoor activities - you can rent over the weekends unless you are kayaking, skiing or climbing and don't want to haul gear in and out of your car every time you reach home.

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

#374
post #359
post #346

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> you can't do "5 minutes of bycicling" when you have 2 toddlers With two, that would be complicated. It's really not that uncommon to see parents ride with one though, with that sort of equipment : https://www.twowheelingtots.com/childbabybikeseatbuyingguide... > Nor are your family going to have easy access to the multitude of other things I didn't mention: fishing, strawberry picking, corn mazes, safari, skiing, t…

> That really depends on location True. Where I grew up, the closest beach was an hour and a half drive away. Closest ski station was in a different country. Wasn't exactly safe to step out of the house to begin with though, being close to slums and all. I consider myself lucky to be able to share different kinds of experiences with my kids now even though the public transport system in north america doesn't help me.…

> You're right, I should just throw my car in the sea. If I also throw out my computer, my grandchildren will be proud that I tried to help bankrupt the ecology-destroying companies that mine rare metals for these gadgets you and I use to waste time online. OR I could just be honest with myself and acknowledge that I'm selfish despite knowing that merely existing is a huge burden on the planet.

You can have a sense of proportion about the fun:ecological impact ratio of the activities you do, and make choices in the light of that. My instinct is that "driving three towns over to ride in a carousel ... just for the heck of it" is in the same category as "tossed all our rubbish in a nearby field": the cost to other people is all out of whack with the benefit to you. I don't know whether that's actually true or not, but going on a long drive for something frivolous triggers the same skin-crawling reaction in me that tossing litter out of a window would.

(My preferred solution would be carbon cap-and-trade (and land value taxes that would translate into road use fees and parking charges) so that car users bore the full costs of the externalities they were imposing, and then if you want to spend your discretionary income on frivolous car journeys that's up to you. But in the current regime I'd say there's a moral duty to minimize car travel or offset it somehow, because by taking a car journey you're imposing a cost on others, much more than just using a rare metal for a time)

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

#375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"That said, I live in Seattle, where there is good public transportation." boy are you in for a treat when you move to a city with good public transportation!

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.

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

#377
post #375

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.

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

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

#378
post #354

in emergency situations like hurricane or earthquake, the current ridesharing system might provide very limited mobility when you need the most. Keep your options open at any time might be priceless sometimes.

Or you get in a car and sit in traffic until you run out of gas and then you're stranded on a highway in the middle of nowhere during a hurricane, as happened to so many people in Houston this past fall.

Few of our cities are actually evacuable in an emergency.

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

#380
post #343
post #337

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> it's a heck more convenient to have a car when you are regularly going to costco, ikea, trying out a new local bakery or restaurant, The idea of going to physical stores to browse articles has become mind numbing to me. 'Regularly going to costco, ikea' when I can just order on amazon, get ikea to deliver to my home, get non-perishable/fresh food online from supermarkets that do home deliveries, have 5 bakeries tha…

> Getting things delivered to your home is far less exhausting Fair. But on the other hand, having ice cream and meatballs at Ikea is a thing. You also need to account for cost of delivery and for returning things. And that's just ikea-related things we do. > 5 bakeries that I can get to in 5 minutes of bicycling and more restaurants than I could care for That describes downtown of any half decent metropolitan city a…

>you can't do "5 minutes of bycicling" when you have 2 toddlers.

I just want to say: come visit the Netherlands sometime. It will surprise you.

(granted, the cycling infra is far superior than most other places in the world)

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