Thursday, May 8, 2025 | 12:00 – 1:00 PM (ET)
A number of research studies have found that ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft have increased the total amount of driving within metropolitan areas. In this study, we examined how the rollout of Uber across the Boston region affected auto use and ownership by analyzing disaggregate, vehicle-level data, in contrast to previous research which has relied either on aggregate travel measures or stated-preference surveys. Using vehicle registration and inspection data including odometer readings, we tracked changes to the daily vehicle miles traveled (VMT) of 1.7 million vehicles in the Boston region over five years as Uber launched there. We applied fixed-effects panel regression methods controlling for a number of factors, using a panel of vehicles as well as a separate panel of Census tracts to enable analysis of auto ownership per capita and vehicle turnover. In contrast to studies finding a strong association between ride-hailing and increased VMT, we found that Uber availability was not statistically related to changes in VMT or auto ownership in the cities of Boston and Cambridge, and outside those core cities was related to a minor 0.6 percent VMT increase and to very slightly lower rates of vehicle turnover and ownership. The much smaller effects we find using these improved data and methods suggest a need for continued evaluation of the impacts of ride-hailing companies on US cities.
About the Presenters
Michael A. N. Montilla is a PhD candidate in the Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of California, Berkeley, and a researcher at the California Partners for Advanced Transportation Technology (PATH). His research focuses on how emerging transportation technologies such as ride-hailing, electric vehicles, and automated/autonomous vehicles affect cities, urban transportation, and planning/design processes.
Daniel G. Chatman is a professor and chair of the Department of City and Regional Planning at UC Berkeley. His work focuses on the relationship between travel behavior and the built environment, and connections between public transportation, immigration, and urban economies.
Matthew Hui is a transportation planning and engineering professional. He is a Licensed Professional Engineer in California, and holds an M.S. in Transportation Engineering and a Master of City Planning from the University of California, Berkeley.
