Why you have (probably) already bought your last car

[LeMarchand]

Put >1 person in a car, or use a minibus, or a bus, or a train

 

If it was that simple, the bus and train companies would have cracked the "always available at a time that suits the traveller" equation years ago.

[mavhc]

Until now they've been working on the pre "everyone has a smartphone" model. plus there's the whole regulation and trains not hitting each other issues.

 

It'll work up from taxis (saves the most money because you're saving 1 driver's wage per 1-3 passengers), to minibuses, to buses to trains.

 

Logically it must become cheaper than owning a car at some point, that's the tipping point where it explodes in size and enables the bus/train thing to be feasible

[ollyyllo]

EVERYONE will be pre booking journeys INTO towns in the morning, and out in the evening. How can they hope to match the capacity needed for peak times, without being hopelessly over stocked for the rest of the day, or running empty vehicles around?

 

They don't need to be empty, they could be deliver stuff.

 

If it was that simple, the bus and train companies would have cracked the "always available at a time that suits the traveller" equation years ago.

 

The bus companies haven't had an app telling them all their passengers schedules and whereabouts.

[jthompson]

I wonder how much efficiency would get lost in overcoming distribution issues like this. Bike share schemes often rely on trucks moving bikes back to empty stations, with bikes naturally collecting in certain areas at certain times of day. People often bemoan the number of vehicles on the road carrying just the driver, but I imagine there'd be just as many, if not more, journeys being made with no people on board whatsoever, just to keep an even distribution of empty vehicles.

[mavhc]

I wonder how much efficiency would get lost in overcoming distribution issues like this. Bike share schemes often rely on trucks moving bikes back to empty stations, with bikes naturally collecting in certain areas at certain times of day. People often bemoan the number of vehicles on the road carrying just the driver, but I imagine there'd be just as many, if not more, journeys being made with no people on board whatsoever, just to keep an even distribution of empty vehicles.

 

The better software you have to use your fleet the more money you make and/or the cheaper you can sell rides.

 

Plus with no need for car parks you can make things closer together so it's easier to walk/more green space so it's nicer to walk

[matt40k]

Plus with no need for car parks you can make things closer together so it's easier to walk/more green space so it's nicer to walk

 

Like a town centre \ shopping mail kinda thing??

[LeMarchand]

The better software you have to use your fleet the more money you make and/or the cheaper you can sell rides.

 

Plus with no need for car parks you can make things closer together so it's easier to walk/more green space so it's nicer to walk build more apartment blocks.

 

With the software, surely that only works if all interested parties are on the same page as regards interoperability? I'm sure there must be some area where that has actually happened...

 

Also, FTFY.

[jthompson]

Thinking about this further, if people stop owning their own cars, and are instead summoning/dismissing autonomous cars, wouldn't that pretty much double the traffic in residential areas? By definition, the more convenient the service for end users, the less likely it'll be that journeys are shared with others. Instead of cars leaving, then coming back at the end of the day to be parked on driveways, you'll have cars arriving then going in the morning, then arriving and going once more at the end of the day.

 

I just feel that the potential for economies of scale where journey sharing is concerned is going to be pretty limited, and lots of energy will be being spend moving empty vehicles and keeping their passenger cabins warm/cool. The convenience bar is set astonishingly high, imho, and you're also competing with vehicles which are essentially serving as extensions of the home.

[mavhc]

Just leave them on the streets/local parking, no need to completely centralise things. 4 people per car = ~4 times fewer cars.

 

The whole "I keep all my crap in my car" problem is a weird side effect, I suggest locked boxes, standardised so they can slot into the boot/train/bus easily, with lockers at work etc. After a while people will get used to it though, everyone who travels without a car now manages

[mavhc]

> build more apartment blocks.

With the software, surely that only works if all interested parties are on the same page as regards interoperability? I'm sure there must be some area where that has actually happened...

 

Also, FTFY.

 

That's fine, more people who don't need cars because they live near their workplace.

 

Seems likely we'd have a just a few large players after a while, which is why everyone's pumping money into uber etc

[jthompson]

Just leave them on the streets/local parking, no need to completely centralise things. 4 people per car = ~4 times fewer cars.

That's what I just don't think is going to be the case. How many people are going to work in the same place (or near enough) and at the same times of day as three of their neighbours? Only anomalies, surely?

[mavhc]

pick people up along the way, drop them off along the way. Would be a good thing to find data on though

[6Foot2]

That's what I just don't think is going to be the case. How many people are going to work in the same place (or near enough) and at the same times of day as three of their neighbours? Only anomalies, surely?

Thinking about my own neighbours, on one side he works in Birmingham and until recently was commuting via public transport (bus, then train) leaving home at 6:30 every day and arriving home at around 9:00. Now he stays the week up there and comes back for the weekend. On the other side, he drives to Watford at around 4:00 am. Not sure what time he gets home. Opposite is a neighbour who works in London. He commutes there each day on the coach leaving at around 7:00 am.

[jmak]

pick people up along the way, drop them off along the way. Would be a good thing to find data on though

Uber Pool is pretty successful where it runs. (Not a fan of their business practices, but their service model is great.)

 

I only know of one person who lives in our village who goes to a similar place of work at the same time as me. However about a third of the cars that drive past my house go within a five minute walk of where I work (it's not a busy road/route so probably only one or two or minute) based on following them up the road and heading the same way until the last roundabout before the school. I quite often see the same cars on my way to work, but wouldn't be able to commit to meeting the same person every day. I would quite easily be able to share with one of the people passing though.

[matt40k]

pick people up along the way, drop them off along the way. Would be a good thing to find data on though

Already happening - Carshare is part of the UK?s largest carpooling network, Liftshare.com - Part of the Liftshare network, a journey matching, carsharing, ridesharing system

[jthompson]

pick people up along the way, drop them off along the way. Would be a good thing to find data on though

This is true.

[sigma]

I think this will be another case of the rural population being left behind again... Hm.

[jmak]

Of course huge numbers of people already don't buy a car - they either lease or choose PCP (and never actually take up the option to buy), so arguably would just be swapping rental by the month for rental by the mile.

 

WRT rural users, I'd agree those who live in the most remote locations would be the most difficult group to cater for, but most people live close to a road where a vehicle passes every few minutes.

 

I am one of those sad people who enjoys driving and am interested in the technology, but I already treat cars and driving in pretty much the same way as white goods; convenience, comfort and price is pretty much where it's at. If I didn't need a car for transport, I'd seriously consider one for entertainment - the way people keep horses or boats currently.

[Arthur]

The bus companies haven't had an app telling them all their passengers schedules and whereabouts.

Popup bus routes and on demand bus services already exist.

 

https://citymapper.com/news/1800/introducing-the-citymapper-smartbus

 

We believe smarter buses lead to better mobility and cities. Our bus route is just like any other route. It has a route page. You can watch the buses move around the map in realtime. We show predicted arrival times on bus stop departure boards.

 

Our routes show up in A to B routing whenever the algorithm decides so based on their viability and frequency. They are multimodal ready, i.e., combine with other transit routes when it makes sense. In other words, they are integrated with the existing infrastructure of the city.

 

When we studied the existing public transit routes, we realised that they don’t always serve people best, nor do they evolve quickly enough to accommodate changes in the city. We built an ultimate tool (codenamed: Simcity) to evaluate routes utilising our demand data and routing. We found we can figure out how to improve existing routes in all of our cities. We can also identify new and better routes. London is actually not that badly served, but other cities have major gaps.

 

We also feel buses haven’t evolved enough. They still roam around cities utilising old systems of operations and inefficient technology. If we’re going to solve urgent problems of congestion and infrastructure, we need buses to improve, to operate smarter. In the era of smartphones we can have responsive buses that react to realtime needs.

 

 

https://pickmeup.oxfordbus.co.uk

 

Here at the Oxford Bus Company, we provide lots of bus options to help passengers travel into the City Centre from all around Oxfordshire. While this is useful, some of our customers told us you also need to travel around the Ring Road or to other locations that could be reached more directly without having to change buses in the City. We’ve listened to your feedback and we’ve launched PickMeUp.

 

PickMeUp is an on-demand ride-sharing minibus service. Download the app and tell us where you want your journey to begin. We'll pick you up from a ‘virtual bus stop’ within a short walkable distance of where you are. The intelligent software works out the best way to take you and our other passengers to your chosen destinations. Simply register your credit or debit card and we’ll be with you in around 10 minutes. You can think of it like a car pool, only bigger - and you never have to drive yourself! It’s good value and comes whenever you want it.

[sigma]

I'll just leave this here: http://www.edugeek.net/forums/windows-10/200039-windows-10-v1809-released-8.html#post1711694

[LeMarchand]

I was in Oxford on Saturday and didn't see either of those options advertised. I did see my first ever car charging point, though. No-one was using it.

 

The fixed-route option sounds as if they are just using fancy-sounding terminology to do what bus companies do anyway (but possibly the adaptations are quicker). The second one sounds OK (apart from Android/iPhone only apps). It would be interesting to hear from people who've actually used it. Given the organisation of the facilities (Park & Ride was littered with signs asking if you'd paid, but the pay point was near the exit and there were no signs pointing to the exhibition we were visiting until you got there) I' not gonna hold my breath.

[matt40k]

(apart from Android/iPhone only apps)

 

Do you have a Windows Phone?

[LeMarchand]

Do you have a Windows Phone?

 

Yep. I'm the one.

[matt40k]

HAHAHA, you can't be surprised there isn't an app. No-one supports Windows Phones!! If it makes you feel any better I work with the other Windows Phone user

[PotNoodleTech]

HAHAHA, you can't be surprised there isn't an app. No-one supports Windows Phones!! If it makes you feel any better I work with the other Windows Phone user

 

Sadly I was forced to move from my windows phone to an Android for this reason. It's such a shame as the Nokia windows phone I had was so darn fast and reliable, never had a problem with it. This LG android phone I got is a total pile of poop.

 

 

But I gots apps