Edmonton Transit to ask to partner with Uber or taxis

edmontonsun.com
By Elise Stolte
April 1, 2017

Edmonton Transit will ask council for permission to explore partnerships with Uber or other taxi and ridesharing companies as part of its shift to express routes in the suburbs.

In other North American cities, subsidizing Uber rides has proven cheaper than building park-and-ride lots or running half-empty buses. Edmonton's transit strategy isn't going to council until June, but transit officials already say this partnership pitch will be part of it.

"It's back to the old dial-a-ride idea," said transit strategist Sarah Feldman, looking for creative ways to get people from their home to an express bus stop since the move would involve scaling back on community buses. "We're not sure what the business case would be or their interest so we need to start having those conversations."

Uber already has partnerships in several U.S. cities.

In Summit, N.J., the city subsidized Uber rides to make them the same cost as parking at the train station to avoid building a new $10-million park-and-ride in the central core.

Altamonte Springs, Fla., gives its residents 20 per cent off any Uber ride that begins and ends in the city, and 25 per cent off a ride connected to public rail.

In San Francisco, a Bay Area landlord got Uber to cap rides between its 8,900-unit Parkmerced complex and the nearest train station to $5 in exchange for the landlord giving every car-free tenant a $100 per month transportation subsidy. The deal let the developer build less parking.

"We're very eager to engage," said Uber Canada's director of public policy, Adam Blinick, talking about partnership possibilities in an interview Friday.

Its data shows many Uber customers are already using it to connect with public transit, making trips ending or starting at the LRT stations. Promoting that is good for Uber. But Blinick said: "It's likely going to mean something very positive for transit adoption, too."

Phone apps can make ordering a car easy but Edmonton's transit strategy officials say they are open to discussions with all private transportation companies.

UberPool

Uber offers another service that could link to express bus stops: UberPool, which gives customers a discount if they agree to let the driver pick up other passengers along the route.

A computer algorithm calculates whether a pickup is likely and how much time it would add before the customer agrees to the ride. That launched nearly three years ago and now, in the 29 cities where it is available, it makes of 20 per cent of the rides and gives passengers a 30 per cent discount, on average.

The Edmonton market isn't ready for UberPool yet. It needs more people going to the same location at the same time, said Blinick.

But that could happen if express bus service takes off. Edmonton already has 87,000 people signed up and using the Uber app. It's a city full of millennials with new attitudes toward car ownership, and the first in Canada to write ridesharing-friendly bylaws, said Blinick.

Cost comparison

Coun. Michael Walters has been looking at the issue from a seniors' mobility perspective. But anything that works for seniors can work for the rest of the population, he said.

Any partnership opportunities the city creates should be open to a variety of companies, he said, including taxis, Driving Miss Daisy and the senior-focused Drive Happiness. "It's not about competition. It's about everyone pulling together to help meet the need in the community."

There might be cheaper and more flexible alternatives to community buses, he said. "Doing that cost comparison is pretty important."