1.
DfT evidence on public attitudes
to sharing
Demelza Birch and Helen Bullock
Social and Behavioural Research team
Presentation to the Commission on Travel Demand:
Sharing inquiry
Tuesday 18th June

2.
Presentation focuses on…
DfT’s Public Attitudes Transport and Technology Tracker Survey: waves 1-
3 (published 7th June)
• 6 monthly face-to-face omnibus survey of 3,500 members of the public (June &
December)
• Covers awareness and attitudes to emerging transport technologies, including electric
vehicles, autonomous vehicles and drones.
• Includes questions on sharing
….the most up to date evidence available

3.
Moving Britain Ahead
What do we mean by sharing?
4The public attitudes tracker asked about sharing in a broad context and
includes questions on ride-sharing eg Uber Pool, and car-sharing eg car clubs.

4.
Moving Britain Ahead
Sharing rides and vehicles
4
July 19
User Responses to Future Transport Technologies &
Services

5.
Awareness of app-based minicab services is similar to that in
December 2017; rise in awareness of bike share schemes and
fall for car rental services
DfT’s Transport and Technology Public Attitudes Tracker, December 2018. Q23. Which of the following types of travel services have you heard of?
Base: Q23 all respondents (Dec 18 3,532; Dec 17: 3,499). Subgroups: Gender: Male (1,689), Female (1,843); Age: 16-24 (452), 25-34 (589), 35-44 (521), 45-54 (486), 55-64 (470), 65-74
(575), 75+ (439); Car owner (2,198), Non-car owner (1,334).
9%
22%
26%
38%
78%
77%
12%
24%
27%
45%
73%
77%
Not aware of any
Internet-arranged or app-
based ride sharing
Car clubs
Public bike share schemes
Car rental services
App-based minicab
services such as Uber
Dec 18
Dec 17
*
5
= significantly higher than Dec 17
*
= significantly lower than Dec 17
*
*
*Not aware of any
higher amongst:
• Women 14% (vs
men 10% )
• Older people 65+
25% (vs 10% or
less in younger
groups)
• Non-car owners
20% (vs car
owners 9%)
• C2DE 18% (vs
ABC1 6%)
88% aware of at
least one of the
services

6.
Usage of ride sharing and vehicle
sharing services is currently very low
1%
1%
3%
29%
7%
1%
1%
3%
27%
22%
Internet-arranged or app-based ride
sharing
Car clubs
Public bike share schemes
App-based minicab services such as
Uber
Car rental services
Car owner Non-car owner
Uptake of ride-sharing services and car clubs is currently very low
78% of those who have used Uber in the last
3 months have never used Uber Pool
before
And of those who have never used Uber Pool:
- 44% did not know it was an option
- 17% did not want to share with strangers.
DfT’s Transport and Technology Public Attitudes Tracker, December 2018, Q.24. Do you personally use any of these travel services nowadays?
Base: Asked to all aware of service but re-based on all respondents (Dec 18: 3,532). Subgroups Gender: Male (1,689), Female (1,843); Age: 16-24 (452), 25-34 (589), 35-44 (521), 45-54 (486),
55-64 (470), 65+ (1,014); Car owner (2,198), Non-car owner (1,334)

7.
Awareness and usage of app-based minicab services (such as
Uber) vary significantly by age; younger groups are the most
engaged. Similar findings to Dec 17.
77%
83% 81%
86%
81%
78%
68%
43%
28%
43% 44%
34%
25%
17% 15%
5%
All
respondents
16-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65-74 75+
Awareness Usage
Q23. Which of the following types of travel services have you heard of?/ Q.24 Do you personally use any of these travel services nowadays?
Base: Q23 all respondents (3,532). Q24 asked to all aware of service (re-based on all 3,532) Subgroups: Age: 16-24 (452), 25-34 (589), 35-44 (521), 45-54 (486),
55-64 (470), 65-74 (575), 75+ (439)
7
= significantly lower than all
other break(s) within category
*
*
*

8.
Awareness and usage of app-based minicab services also varies
significantly by region; highest level of usage in London
77%
83% 82% 81% 80%
76% 75%
71%
66% 64%
28%
34%
46%
34%
29%
21%
17% 18% 18%
14%
All
respondents
East of
England
London West
Midlands
South East Yorkshire
and The
Humber
East
Midlands
North West South West North East
Awareness Usage
Q23. Which of the following types of travel services have you heard of?/ Q.24 Do you personally use any of these travel services nowadays?
Base: Q23 asked to all respondents (3,532). Q24 asked to all aware of service (re-based on all, 3,532). Subgroups:
Regions: South East (597); East of England (391); London (514); South West (351); Yorkshire & The Humber (357); West Midlands (384); East Midlands (301); North
East (172); North West (465)
8
= significantly higher than all
other break(s) within category
*
*

9.
Main concerns with ride sharing are
safety, convenience and comfort
9
10%
7%
7%
8%
27%
27%
29%
42%
Don't know
No disadvantages
Less reliable journeys/ less control
over route
Less comfortable - less space
Less privacy - have to interact with
strangers
Longer journeys (waiting for vehicle/
diversions to pick up others)
Not knowing who you will share with
Safety risk - travelling with
strangers
Women 49% (vs men
36%)
BME 48% (vs white
42%)
North East 57%, West
Mids 54% (vs 44% or
less in other regions)
DfT’s Transport and Technology Public Attitudes Tracker, December 2018. Q72. What do you think are the disadvantages, if any, of ride-sharing compared with travelling alone or with people you
know in a taxi?
Base: All respondents (3,532) Subgroups Gender: Male (1,689), Female (1,843); Age: 16-24 (452), 25-34 (589), 35-44 (521), 45-54 (486), 55-64 (470), 65-74 (575), 75+ (439); Ethnicity White
(2,999), BME (508); Region: South East (597); East of England (391); London (514); South West (351); Yorkshire & The Humber (357); West Midlands (384); East Midlands (301); North East
(172); North West (465); Aware of app-based mini-cab services (2,554), unaware of app-based mini-cab services (978)

10.
9%
11%
5%
11%
12%
20%
67%
Don't know
No advantages
Safer than travelling alone
Potential for less congestion
More social
Environmentally friendly
Cheaper than travelling alone
10
Main advantage of ride-sharing is seen as price…
Benefits of sharing
Those most likely to cite no advantages:
• Older people (15% vs 25% of 16-24s)
• Unaware of app-based minicab services
(18%) vs those with awareness 9%)
Men 69% (vs women 64%)
ABC1 73% (vs C2DE 60%)
Uber users 79% (vs non-
users 64%)
DfT’s Transport and Technology Public Attitudes Tracker, December 2018. Q71b. What do you think are the advantages, if any, of ride-sharing compared with travelling alone or with people you
know in a taxi?
Base: All respondents (3,532) Subgroups Gender: Male (1,689), Female (1,843); Age: 16-24 (452), 25-34 (589), 35-44 (521), 45-54 (486), 55-64 (470), 65-74 (575), 75+ (439); SEG: ABC1 (1,609),
C2DE (1,923); Uber user (511), Non-user (3,021); Aware of app-based mini-cab services (2,554), unaware of app-based mini-cab services (978)

11.
9%
11%
5%
11%
12%
20%
67%
Don't know
No advantages
Safer than travelling alone
Potential for less congestion
More social
Environmentally friendly
Cheaper than travelling alone
11
But even with large cost savings,
some people still wouldn’t switch
9% of Uber users would never use Uber Pool and
16% of taxi users would never use a shared taxi
Non-switchers most likely to be
• Women (20% vs. men 12%)
• White (17% vs 9% BME)
• Live outside London (15%+ vs 9% London)
• Older age groups (10% 16-24s to 22% 65+)
Average fare
to switch from
£20 taxi to
shared taxi:
£11.04
Average fare
to switch from
£20 Uber to
Uber Pool:
£11.43
Benefits of sharing
DfT’s Transport and Technology Public Attitudes Tracker, December 2018. Q71a. Imagine that the cost of a regular Uber trip – so not using Uber Pool – was £20. How much would Uber Pool need
to cost for you to choose it instead of a regular trip?/ Q73. Imagine the cost of a regular taxi trip was £20. How much would ride-sharing by taxi need to cost for you to choose this instead of a regular
taxi trip?
Base: Q71a Those using Uber in last 3 months (511)/ Q73 Those who have not used Uber in last 3 months (3,021)

12.
Drivers are also very attached to
owning their car
1%
5%
5%
5%
14%
17%
80%
71%
I enjoy the freedom and independence I get from
my car or van (Car owners/users)
My current lifestyle means I need to own a car or
van (Car owners/users)
Disagree strongly Disagree slightly Neither agree nor disagree Agree slightly Agree strongly
Car drivers are strongly attached to ownership
DfT’s Transport and Technology Public Attitudes Tracker, December 2017. Q18. How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement(s)…
Base: All who personally own/ continuously use a car/van (2,162) for car/van statements. Subgroups: 16-24 (138); 25-34 (307); 35-44 (298); 45-54 (372); 55-64 (351); 65+ (696)

13.
So what’s next?
Future of Mobility Research and Analysis programme includes plans to
undertake a qualitative research project on sharing. It would explore:
- Who currently shares transport,
- Why they share
- What are the factors that shape decision-making
Continued use of the Transport and Technology Tracker – we encourage you
to dig deeper into the published data!
Future of Mobility Urban Strategy includes as one of its nine principles:
"Mobility innovation must help to reduce congestion
through more efficient use of limited road space,
for example through sharing rides".

14.
For further information….
• Contact Helen, Demelza or Mia:
– Helen.Bullock@dft.gov.uk
– Demelza.Birch@dft.gov.uk
– Mia.Drake@dft.gov.uk

15.
Additional slides

16.
Transport and Technology Public
Attitudes Tracker
Methodology
§ Survey conducted on the Kantar TNS
face-to-face omnibus
§ The omnibus survey used random
location sampling, a high quality form of
quota sampling
§ Representative sample of individuals
aged 16+ in England
§ Questions developed jointly by DfT and
Kantar Public, drawing on previous
surveys where relevant
§ Questionnaire refined through two rounds
of cognitive testing prior to Wave 1
§ New questions on Mobility as Service,
Uber/Uber Pool and ride-sharing added
at Wave 3 (following cognitive testing)
§ Wave 3 fieldwork conducted between
30th November and 9th December 2018
§ Total achieved sample of 3,532 adults;
data weighted to adult population of
England