Six signs that market entry isn’t working well enough
Equity
Even in city-led efforts, comparatively lower-income and non-white neighborhoods, like the Bronx, often receive services like CityBike with major delays. This observation is also echoed by studies. such as one that found London’s bike share primarily benefits 18- to 34-year-old white males.
Economy
Ride-sourcing services risk pulling revenue from public transit, adding to congestion and exacerbating overstretched taxi permitting economies in cities. They may also undermine planned sustainable infrastructure investments by providing a superficial quick fix.
Quality and safety of public space
Clutter, congestion and unregulated deployment of devices and services risk undermining efforts to improve urban spaces and increase safety for all road users, especially vulnerable residents such as children and the elderly.
Business risk
In the absence of clear market-entry guidelines and pathways, companies are encouraged to enter the market first in unregulated ways that risk breaking the law and expose them to unpredictable regulatory and competitive risks.
Competition
A lack of market-entry pathways disproportionately benefits venture capital-backed operators that can afford the risk and high cost of asking for forgiveness later, whilst community-oriented operators, which often must take more measured approaches, are left behind.
Environment
Many disruptions are presented as universal positives for the environment, but often, their full-scale impact is unknown. Thousands of abandoned bikes, increased car ridership and unknown device lifecycles raise concerns.