Study: San Francisco Public Transit Takes Hit With Ride-Hailing Apps
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) – Since the rise of ride-hailing apps such as Uber and Lyft, public transit ridership in San Francisco and other major U.S. cities has taken a hit, according to a new study.
The study by the University of Kentucky (.pdf) is the broadest one to date, looking at 22 major cities across the country, and in particular San Francisco, where the impact on public transit is significant.
Researchers found since 2010, bus ridership in San Francisco has dropped nearly 13 percent.
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The study also found public transit ridership was reduced in all the major cities they looked at, except for Seattle.
On average, bus ridership declined by 1.7 percent, while ridership declined by 1.3 percent. What makes matters worse for transit agencies is that the declines are cumulative, adding up year after year.
For transit agencies to increase ridership, the study found that agencies would have to increase service by 20 percent, which is not feasible for many transit operators.
KPIX 5 has reached out to Uber and Lyft for comment early Wednesday morning, but has not received a response.
