The impact ride-hailing services have on public transportation is a hot topic and while some view it as a threat, others find the opportunity.
There was a neighborhood where Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) discontinued service and another neighborhood with limited service. To help people in that zone, PSTA has partnered with Uber and a taxi cab company for a pilot project to help riders get to a PSTA bus stop.
If you are in the zone, are going to one of the two bus stops, the apps for the companies has a PSTA slider that shows up on the screen. You slide it over and PSTA covers half your cost, up to $3.00, to get you to the bus stop.
The bus stops in both zones are retail stops and Miller said theoretically, someone could take Uber to go shopping and may never take the bus. However, the parameters are set petty closely and even if someone were to do that, he said it’s still a lower cost than if they were running a bus for them to get there.
“It shows that we’re a transportation provider, meeting that first-mile, last-mile piece and providing connections,” said CEO Brad Miller. “It shows that PSTA is looking to be innovative and to come up with the best solution, not the same solution.”
The cab companies in the area are very opposed to Uber, Miller said, and there are currently debates on it at the state capital.
“We contract out already with cabs for our paratransit,” he continued. “We’re for a level playing field; it doesn’t have to be Uber.
“Hopefully, I think us showing transit, cabs, Uber — it’s all transportation, may soften the debate a little. It’s coming, so we might as well deal with it.”
