App-Based, On-Demand Ride Services: Comparing Taxi and Ridesourcing Trips and User Characteristics in San Francisco

The rapid growth of on-demand ride services such as uberX and Lyft, or “ridesourcing,” has prompted debate among policy makers and stakeholders. At present, ridesourcing’s usage and impacts are not well understood. Key questions include: how ridesourcing and traditional taxis compare with respect to trip types, customers, and locations served; whether ridesourcing complements or competes with public transit; and potential impacts on vehicle kilometers traveled. The authors address these questions using an intercept survey. In spring 2014, 380 complete surveys were collected from three ridesourcing “hot spots” in San Francisco. Survey results are compared with matched-pair taxi trip data and results of a previous taxi user survey. The authors also compared travel times for ridesourcing and taxis with those for public transit. The findings indicate ridesourcing serves a previously unmet demand for convenient, point-to-point urban travel. Although taxis and ridesourcing share similarities, the findings show differences in users and the user experience. Ridesourcing wait times are markedly shorter and more consistent than those of taxis, while ridesourcing users tend to be younger, own fewer vehicles and more frequently travel with companions. Ridesourcing, like taxis, appears to both substitute for and complement public transit; the majority of ridesourcing trips would have taken substantially longer if made by public transit. Impacts on overall vehicle travel are unclear. Future research should build on this exploratory study to further understand impacts of ridesourcing on labor, social equity, the environment, and public policy.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AP020 Emerging and Innovative Public Transport and Technologies.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Rayle, Lisa
  • Shaheen, Susan
  • Chan, Nelson
  • Dai, Danielle
  • Cervero, Robert
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 94th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2015-1-11 to 2015-1-15
• Date: 2015

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; Maps; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 17p
• Monograph Title: TRB 94th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alternatives analysis; Consumers; Demand responsive transportation; Demographics; Mode choice; Public transit; Surveys; Taxi services; Travel demand; Travel time
• Geographic Terms: San Francisco (California)
• Subject Areas: Passenger Transportation; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01556512
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 15-4633
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Mar 6 2015 1:46PM