The article disregards the fact that a car has features that Uber doesn't. One is mobile storage: you can store things in your car that you often need wherever you go. This is particularly important for parents of young children. Another one is instant availability for open-ended road trips. It's not feasible to go visit a friend two hours away with the possibility of staying overnight with an Uber.
If you're going to include the cost of car ownership disadvantages such as tickets, you should also include the cost of Uber-dependency disadvantages such as the occasional need to rent a car, always loading and unloading everything you need to take with you, etc.
This is a good point, but there are also several Uber benefits over car ownership. For example, being able to travel when tired/inebriated. Also, not being late if you have an engine issue or get a flat tire. This article tries to enumerate the financial differences, the subjective ones are also very important.
"Also, not being late if you have an engine issue or get a flat tire."
How does uber prevent that? I suppose with a fleet of cars, another could pick you up, but you're still going to be late (just not as late)
(edited to add, and on the frontend, I can guarantee that about 45 seconds after leaving the door at work, I'll be starting my car and moving out of the lot, how does uber guarantee that a car will be ready to leave for work within say 15 minutes, so I'd have to burn much more total commute time to make sure theres a realistic chance I won't be late. TLDR is the std deviation of a rental is going to be very large compared to an owned car.)
> I can guarantee that about 45 seconds after leaving the door at work, I'll be starting my car and moving out of the lot.
You can't guarantee that, since car problems to arise.
This is the same issue with bike share schemes. I don't have to worry about anyone stealing my bike, or if the bike gets a puncture or has issues, I pick another bike.
The fun thing about that is that you can use Uber in those circumstances, and still have the freedom to jump in your car and drive off whenever you want to instead of living by someone else's schedule. His argument is just plain bad.
It's not an argument for or against, it's the argument of cost - "freedom to jump in your car and drive off whenever you want to" is worth more to you than others. There are people that take a road trip on any given weekend, and there are those who only travel out of their county when work necessitates it.
> Another one is instant availability for open-ended road trips. It's not feasible to go visit a friend two hours away with the possibility of staying overnight with an Uber.
Traditional car rental is for this usage case. Availability isn't quite instant but easy a day or so ahead. Uber doesn't need to cover this usage pattern since there's already an extensive market of supply. Sure, if you go every weekend you'd want to own your own car, but for infrequent such trips, regular car rental supplements an Uber-cetric lifestyle just fine.
If you're going to include the cost of car ownership disadvantages such as tickets, you should also include the cost of Uber-dependency disadvantages such as the occasional need to rent a car, always loading and unloading everything you need to take with you, etc.