When cities expand quickly, existing transportation troubles intensify. In 2008, roughly half of the world's populace lived in urban areas. In 2050, experts estimate that 70 percent will live in metropolitan areas. (http://www.prb.org/Publications/Lesson-Plans/HumanPopulation/Urbanization.aspx) Widespread adoption of shared mobility networks can mitigate these growing pains, raise quality of life, and stimulate economic expansion.
Pascal's Bold Experiment
Blaise Pascal, French philosopher and apotheosis of a true Renaissance man, is generally credited with developing the first public transportation enterprise in Paris in 1662. The innovation in personal urban travel, which launched with seven horse-drawn carriages, was discontinued in 1675 due to many factors including the fact that the majority of the population couldn't afford the five-cent fare. In the 19th century, however, his brilliant concept was revived and has flourished around the world in a myriad of forms in cities of all sizes.
In the last few years, shared mobility has expanded so far beyond traditional city buses, subways, carpools, commuter trains, and private taxi services that it is considered by many to be a contemporary phenomenon.
Shared mobility is a broad term that identifies any program, network, service, or agreement (public or private) where a group of users jointly owns or uses the vehicles of conveyance—cars, bikes, scooters, shuttles, etc. There are numerous programs around the world including ride sourcing, bike sharing, car sharing, and scooter sharing. Currently, these entities are concentrated in urban population centers but are adapting for the needs of individuals in rural areas.
If You Build It, The Apps Will Come
Forward-thinking start-ups and established tech firms are introducing aggregator apps so users can conveniently see their transportation options in any given location, request a ride, and pay with the app right from their phone.
The Benefits of Shared Mobility
The National League of Cities studied the potential effects of what some would consider a modest rate of adoption and made some estimations.
If all of the following occurred in the 15 cities analyzed:
- 8 percent of the adult population joined car sharing
- 4 percent joined bikesharing
- 4 percent took one trip per week using ride sharing or ride sourcing instead of driving alone
- Transit ridership increased by 3 percent
It would deliver the following environmental and financial benefits:
- 134 fewer gallons of gas would be burned
- $8.6 billion in total household transportation savings
- 1.6 million fewer metric tons of CO2 created, the equivalent of planting 40 million trees! (https://citiesspeak.org/2015/10/23/how-cities-can-harness-the-benefits-of-shared-mobility/)
Regardless of the changing transportation landscape, private car ownership is the preference for many Falconer dwellers and I-86 Truck & Auto Repair is here to serve all of their automotive service needs. In addition, many local Uber and Lyft drivers trust us to keep their most important business asset maintained and repaired when necessary. To make an appointment, call us at 716-665-2501.