If you live in an urban area and depend on ride-hailing services like Uber or Lyft, you may have ultimate convenience at your fingertips, but you could far more than if you purchased your own vehicle. This is based on a recent study overseen by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety in Orlando, FL.
Based on data compiled from 243,838 economy-level, single rider trips taken in 20 U.S. urban areas, the AAA found that people living in cities who depend on ride-hailing spend, on average, $20,118 annually. The average user pays $13.15 per trip to travel a typical 6.66 miles.
The AAA’s latest report expects that a new car costs an average of $7,321 annually, with 10,841 miles driven. That includes money laid out for the vehicle itself as well as for operating expenses such as fuel, maintenance, repair, financing, insurance, license/registration costs, taxes, and parking fees.
One factor that can change the equation, however, is what these people have to pay to park a car. The lowest priced big-city parking in the country, according to AAA data, is in Phoenix, AZ, with an average yearly cost of $708. On the other side, if you park a car in New York City, expect to spend an average $8,088 for the right. The national rate is $2,728 per year.
“Whether you own a vehicle or not, ride-hailing services are a convenient transportation option,” says John Nielsen, AAA’s managing director for automotive engineering and repair. “However, with the average American city-dweller driving nearly 11,000 miles per year, a personal vehicle is still the more cost-effective choice.”
This means that those living in Boston, MA face the highest average ride-hailing costs in the nation at a yearly rate of $27,545. Nashville, TN comes in second at $26,397 a year, with Seattle WA at $23,951, and Philadelphia, PA at an average $23,201. Urbanites in Dallas, TX pay the least among the 20 busiest U.S. cities for ride-hailing at $16,944 per year.
“For those who travel a very limited number of miles annually, or have mobility issues that prevent them from driving a personal vehicle, ride-hailing can be a viable and important option,” Nielsen says. “But, for everyone else: the car is still king.”
