U.S. Drivers Trade In Cars To Rely On Ridesharing

Are we starting to see the beginning of the end of private car ownership? That may be true if a new Reuters/Ipso poll is an indication of a greater shift in the new sharing economy. Image Source: Wikimedia Ride Services As Primary Transport According to the recently published opinion poll, close to a quarter of U.S. adults sold or traded in a vehicle over the last year. While the vast majority of those drivers bought or leased a new car, nine percent did not. Instead, they have decided to rely on ride sharing services like Lyft and Uber as their primary means of transportation. Another nine percent of respondents said that they planned to sell their current cars and rely primarily on ride services within the next twelve months. Representative Of The End Of The Private Car While these drivers are just a small minority, it’s been projected that they represent what will soon be a greater emerging trend—one that ride sharing and some technology companies are banking on. Emily Castor, Lyft Director of Transportation Policy has said the survey is “early evidence” of a future where personal car ownership is obsolete. Also in response to the poll, Andrew Salzber, Uber’s Head Of Transportation Policy and Research said “What we’ve seen anecdotally aligns with what you’ve found.” Image Source: Wikimedia   Are Fewer People Willing Get Behind The Wheel? The Reuters/Ipos poll on transitioning from car ownership to ride service reliance was the first the pollsters had conducted, so there’s no sure way of saying the trend is on the rise. The poll also did not confirm that access to ride sharing services were the direct reason some drivers were giving up vehicle ownership. It may be too early to tell whether we’re seeing the beginning of the end of the market for the personal auto, but auto companies are now integrating more technology to stay competitive during this transportation shift. We could very well be entering a new era where fewer Americans are eager to get behind the wheel when they can have someone else, or an autonomous system, get them from point A to point B. [embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GxDHXZ8Yw8[/embedyt] What do you think about the results of the Reuters/Ipos poll? Is private vehicle ownership bound to be on its way out because of the sharing economy and autonomous technology, or is this just another trend that’s bound to level off? Tell us what you think in the comments.   Article Sources https://www.reuters.com http://www.cnbc.com http://mashable.com  

U.S. Drivers Trade In Cars To Rely On Ridesharing was originally published to http://magoda50.wpengine.com/