July 10, 2019—The arrival of ride hailing is associated with an increase of approximately 3 percent in the number of motor vehicle fatalities and fatal accidents, reported Insurance Journal.
This comes from research from the University of Chicago's school of business. The researchers used the staggered roll-out dates from Uber and Lyft to review the eight quarters before and after ride hailing adoption in large U.S. cities from 2001-16—analyzing traffic volume, transportation choices and accidents to arrive at their conclusion.
The documented increase in accidents appears to persist and even increase over time. Ride hailing has put more cars on the road, and that has meant more accidents, injuries, and deaths involving drivers, passengers, bikers, and pedestrians, the study says.
For perspective, while in 2010 the number of roadway deaths in the U.S. stood at 32,885 (the lowest level since 1949), that number increased to more than 37,400 in 2016. The authors find that the introduction of ride hailing services in 2011 accounts for roughly 3 percent annual increase in auto deaths nationwide, or 987 people each year.
