Some recent evidence suggests that ride-hailing cars are increasing the degree of congestion in many cities.
First of all, I would like to explain the meaning of ride-hailing for the benefit of those who may not know what it is.
- Ride-hailing is when a rider “hails” or hires a personal driver to take them exactly where they need to go. The transportation vehicle is not shared with any other riders, nor does it make several stops along a route.
- Ride-sharing, by contrast, is synonymous with carpooling. It is literally the process in which a rider shares a vehicle with other riders. It is not personal transportation, as the space is shared, and it will make stops to pick up other riders. (https://www.ecolane.com/blog/ride-hailing-vs.-ride-sharing-the-key-difference-and-why-it-matters)
From the above, ride-hailing will not reduce the number of vehicles on the roads. As it is even more convenient to hail a vehicle using mobile apps, people would not be encouraged to use public transport. This phenomenon would lead to even more congestion in the near future as Prof. Joseph Tham has mentioned, since the number of vehicles would be increasing.
To have a sustainable transport system, this problem should be solved. I propose two measures.
- Governments should make rules to reduce the desire to use these systems. If there are fewer ride-hailing services in the city, public transport ridership (bus and subway) and bike ridership will increase. This will cause a reduction in congestion. For instance, the Korean Government had to make laws to check the use of Uber. In their case, private car owners cannot engage in that business unless it is converted into a taxi (UberBlack - Korean Uber system - https://www.quora.com/Is-Uber-banned-in-South-Korea-If-yes-than-why/answer/Seoyun-Jin ).
- Public transport operators should implement measures which would encourage the use of their services. If commuters receive good service, together with reduced fares, and an appropriate level of service, using ride-sharing would be a second option.
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Economics