1. Ride-hailing: Regulation & Collaboration
UCLA’s experience in leveraging the benefits and curbing the negatives of the ride-hailing mobility option.
Abdallah Daboussi
UCLA Transportation
CHESC 2018
July 10th, 2018

2. Background 45,000 students; 32,000 employees
Campus located in a relatively dense urban environment
Limited parking on campus
~23,000 spaces with approximately 95% utilization rate
Resident students granted parking only by exception
Newer generation veering away from automobile ownership and use
Population tech savvy

3. Result: Environment Ripe for Ride-Hailing Use
38,000 weekly pick-ups and drop-offs at UCLA in Winter 2017
68,000 weekly pick-ups and drop-offs in Fall of 2017
Over 90,000 pick-ups and drop-offs that take place on UCLA’s campus property every week

4. Issues
Multiple ride-hailing vehicles stopping in unauthorized areas throughout the day
Disrupting the smooth flow of traffic
Increasing the chance for a collision, especially when stops are sudden
Blocking fire lanes
Uncertainty on passenger pick-up location leads to erratic driving behavior
Driver is distracted, and drives very slowly to locate passenger
Illegal U-Turns
Queuing up or driving through undesirable locations
Present in areas with high pedestrian concentration
Congestion and campus aesthetics

5. Result: directive from senior administration to devise A solution

6. Most Practical Solution: Pick-Up locations scattered across campus (Regulation)
Airports already implemented similar system
Needed a university friendly model
Pilot Effort: Commencement 2017
Results
Drop-offs uncontrolled

7. Challenges Student body Input
Accustomed to the hyper-convenience that ride-hailing offers
Safety concerns at night
Ability for disabled students to access the locations
Initial Resistance from ride-hailing providers
Concerned with user experience

8. Addressing the Challenges
Designated12 locations situated across campus
Each part of campus was no more than a 5-minute walk to any of the designated locations
Walk-shed analysis
Limited hours the geo-fence was live
Worked with the Center for Accessible Education to ensure equitable access
Added two more locations over the months based on campus community feedback (for a total of 14)

11. Before Safety Initiative

12. After Safety Initiative

13. Specific use cases Basketball Games Commencement 2018
Created a mini geo-fence to encompass high traffic area near Pauley Pavilion
Tested the feasibility of a ride-hailing staging area in a parking structure
Commencement 2018
Created locations near major venues and dormitories, as well as the utilization of Parking Structure 8

14. Basketball geo-fence

15. Commencement 2018 Geo-fence

16. Drivers and passengers waiting in the staging area

17. Drivers and Passengers Waiting in the Staging Area

18. Commuting Partnership (Collaboration)
Already popular mobility option
Especially within 5 miles
UCLA has preference for shared mobility vs single occupancy
Ride-hailing
Private Automobile
Ride-hailing entities in head on battle
Despite heavy losses, willing to offer discounts for market share
University partnerships offer good PR

19. destination heatmap

20. Details of the Pilot Program
$5.99 flat fare
UberPool only
5 mile radius
Available to anyone with a UCLA alias
24/7
2/1/18-6/17/18
No promotion of Uber’s main competitor (Lyft)

21. Final Remarks
Regulating pick-ups for ride-hailing becoming best practice
Airports
Other Universities
Cities
Increasing in relevance as a standard mobility option
Best to work with them, assuring mutual interests respected
Potential exists to reduce single occupancy vehicle usage, paving the way for a more sustainable ride-hailing presence

22. Thank You!