Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) and public transit: Examining relationships between TNCs, transit ridership, and neighborhood qualities in San Francisco

Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) like Uber and Lyft are altering urban transportation and their impact on public transit ridership (PTR) is an especially pressing issue. Much research addresses whether TNCs serve to substitute or complement public transit as well as TNC users' characteristics. However, exactly where any relationships occur within urban areas between TNC use and: 1) PTR or 2) neighborhood qualities is largely underexamined. Examining San Francisco, California and using globally weighted regressions (GWR) and ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions, this study focuses on how relationships between TNC use and PTR as well as TNC use and neighborhood characteristics vary across space. Results here indicate positive relationships between: 1) TNC use and PTR; and 2) TNC and choice rider neighborhoods. However, these relationships vary across the city in terms of significance and magnitude where some areas, like the Financial District, show no significant relationships. Results, thus, identify areas specifically affected by TNC use. From a public transportation policy and planning perspective, then, this research suggests that very specific areas deserve targeted attention to support and maintain public transit ridership or potentially entice more choice riders to public transit in the face of TNC use.