Smart ideas: Riding the rails
Zach Graves, writing for R Street Institute
The D.C. government s proposed increase in taxes for rides with “transportation network companies” like Uber and Lyft to help fund the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority system is a misguided approach to fund and fix WMATA s problems and unfairly punishes TNCs for offering a superior product.” Critics say part of Metro’s ridership decline since 2012 “is due to TNCs taking away riders. Those critics are correct at least in part. According to a report from WMATA, many would-be riders opt for TNCs over the metro, particularly at night. However, TNCs are just one of many factors that have contributed to WMATA s falling ridership numbers telework, cheaper gas prices, a drop in reliability, and safety concerns also play a role.
