For years, automakers, industry analysts, and more than a few studies have suggested that ridesharing services like Uber and Lyft will take increasingly larger bites out of the auto market. (The effect is magnified by self-driving tech, in case you were wondering.)
Yesterday, another study seconded that theory. Details about it are scant at the moment, but here’s a brief summary:
The study, compiled by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, Texas A&M Transportation Institute and Columbia University, focused on Austin, Texas, where on-demand services like Uber and Lyft pulled services due to a local ordnance [sic*].
The study found that 41 percent of 1,200 people surveyed said they used their own car to fill the void left by Uber and Lyft, and 9 percent purchased a vehicle for this purpose.
Let the Carpocalypse…begin!
* This isn’t just a typo, it’s a hilarious typo. Or, given the blustering tone of our commander in chief, an eerily ironic one.