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First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

sfcta.org

41–50 of 105 posts

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#41
post #18

Uber is really a heaven sent product for me and my family. We have to pick up and drop off our daughter at her day care on a daily basis and without Uber, I am not sure how would we have done it. I hope we can expand studies like this with the quality of life improvement which services like Uber have been responsible. Also, there are other things which have improved too. Such as less drunk driving, improved safety es…

> We have to pick up and drop off our daughter at her day care on a daily basis and without Uber I'm amazed that Uber is considered an affordable commute device. Is that a SV phenomenon ?

Eh, it depends on how you look at it. If you are comparing Lyft/Uber to public transit, yeah they lose out by a lot, but I don't think a lot of people are doing that. I think a lot of people are comparing Lyft/Uber against the cost of owning a semi-new car in a major city and that's much more comparable.

Here's a super ball park monthly cost breakdown:

- Car payment: $250

- Parking: $200

- Insurance: $85 (~$500 every 6 months)

- Gas: $50

- Registration: $40 (~$500+ a year)

- Saving for maintenance: $50 (assuming $600 a year, which is probably low)

That's super super napkin math, but that's almost $700 a month for a car, which is basically the same as $30 each work day for a month. On top of that, you don't have to deal with the hassle of parking in a city, which has to be worth something.

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Would you continue to live in San Francisco if ride sharing were banned?

#inflammatory At this point, you have no argument but probably are just pissed that families are co-habiting your preferred non-family only city space. Get a life and do something with it.

Not really, I’m friends with my neighbors who have kids and I have no problems with families in San Francisco. They take their kids on the MUNI and I see plenty of other families on there as well.

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#43
post #18

Uber is really a heaven sent product for me and my family. We have to pick up and drop off our daughter at her day care on a daily basis and without Uber, I am not sure how would we have done it. I hope we can expand studies like this with the quality of life improvement which services like Uber have been responsible. Also, there are other things which have improved too. Such as less drunk driving, improved safety es…

> We have to pick up and drop off our daughter at her day care on a daily basis and without Uber I'm amazed that Uber is considered an affordable commute device. Is that a SV phenomenon ?

In SF, Uber pool rides are cheap ($20 can usually get you anywhere in the City, and shorter distances at off peak times are often under 10). Compared with just cost of parking which is easily 300+ a month at many apartment buildings and only a piece of the cost of car ownership, commuting via Uber/Lyft actually makes economic sense.

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#45
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> We have to pick up and drop off our daughter at her day care on a daily basis and without Uber I'm amazed that Uber is considered an affordable commute device. Is that a SV phenomenon ?

Eh, it depends on how you look at it. If you are comparing Lyft/Uber to public transit, yeah they lose out by a lot, but I don't think a lot of people are doing that. I think a lot of people are comparing Lyft/Uber against the cost of owning a semi-new car in a major city and that's much more comparable. Here's a super ball park monthly cost breakdown: - Car payment: $250 - Parking: $200 - Insurance: $85 (~$500 every…

Your parking number seems low. May depend on where in the city you are parking. But driving to work means parking in two places regularly which could be more like 500/month. Depends where you live and where you work.

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#46
To be clear, Uber and Lyft are in cash burn phase, still... Yes, this is essentially still a free market economy but the prices of rides are largely subsidised to bring them to a point where they compete with public transport.

That said, public transport is often a last mile problem. How do you get to and from the node, with a baby, in bad weather etc. Public transport is far from ideal and TNCs fill the gap willingly.

TNCs fill the gap so easily by piggybacking off the Auto Lobby. If we had more, denser public transport coupled with reliable safe bike lanes (heck sometimes the whole sidewalk is missing...) public would be much more attractive.

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They would be perfect if people rode them in the street, in the bike lanes.

I don't understand why cities even allow cars. For example Amsterdam would work so much better if the roads became bike/electric-scooter* lanes with limited car access. In New York (well, Manhattan), London and Paris it would work even better because you have a subway. That would also solve the air quality problems of those cities in one fell swoop. * Gas scooters - particularly two-stroke - are a relic from the past…

It wouldn't work in Paris, with the current infrastructure, there's a lot of places that can't be easily reached with a car. In addition, there's a lot traffic that goes through Paris from one subburb to another.

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#48
post #17
post #2

"TNCs had little impact on congestion in the western and southern San Francisco neighborhoods." Recently Supervisor Peskin apparently reached a deal to impose a "net fares" tax on the TNC's. I wonder if they will consider differentiating it by neighborhood: imposing larger charges downtown. Peskin has also lobbied for downtown congestion pricing although that is harder to implement, politically and technologically, t…

> Peskin has also lobbied for downtown congestion pricing although that is harder to implement, politically and technologically, than such a tax. Politically, sure. The idea has been floating around for at least a decade that I know of, and probably longer. Technologically? License plate readers on every intersection, let's say, for the sake of argument, every intersection along Van Ness and South Van Ness going east…

It's worth noting that London has had a congestion zone for 15 years now and it wasn't particularly difficult technologically back then.

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#49

To be clear, Uber and Lyft are in cash burn phase, still... Yes, this is essentially still a free market economy but the prices of rides are largely subsidised to bring them to a point where they compete with public transport. That said, public transport is often a last mile problem. How do you get to and from the node, with a baby, in bad weather etc. Public transport is far from ideal and TNCs fill the gap willingl…

I'm not sure how credible this is but someone who work at one of the ride sharing company told me most of the cash burn happens in new markets for rapid growth and established markets like SF are profitable.

Re: First analysis of how Uber and Lyft have affected roadway congestion in SF

#50
post #18

Uber is really a heaven sent product for me and my family. We have to pick up and drop off our daughter at her day care on a daily basis and without Uber, I am not sure how would we have done it. I hope we can expand studies like this with the quality of life improvement which services like Uber have been responsible. Also, there are other things which have improved too. Such as less drunk driving, improved safety es…

> We have to pick up and drop off our daughter at her day care on a daily basis and without Uber I'm amazed that Uber is considered an affordable commute device. Is that a SV phenomenon ?

Ever heard the phrase "has more money than sense"?
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