Back in April, Portland became the only city in the U.S. where community members came together to craft recommendations to regulate and welcome ridesharing. Part of that process was a pilot program that allowed Uber to operate while the city collected and analyzed data on our impact.

Just a few months later, we are proud to be closing in on one million completed trips in the Rose City. And here are the four biggest takeaways from the study.

  • Wait times for ridesharing are shorter than other for-hire options at nearly every time of the day, in nearly every Portland zip code.

If you need a ride in Portland, you’ve got one. The data shows that ridesharing and taxi services cover every zip code in the area, and wait times are decreasing across the board. 75% of ridesharing rides now have a wait time of 6 minutes or less, while competitors meet those standards 58% of the time.

More transportation options leading to increased reliability show that Portlanders are taking advantage of the choice, and that consumers are the ones benefiting from the competition.

  • Ridesharing is serving East Portland and underserved neighborhoods like never before.

We are proud of our service in the traditionally underserved neighborhoods of East Portland. According to the report, ridesharing service in the area “increased by almost 170% between May and August.” The report goes on to say that “East Portland saw a nearly 50% increase in total level of service during these four months.”

  • Ridership for ALL for-hire transportation options increased by almost 40% between May and August. In other words, the for-hire transportation pie is growing in Portland.

More and more residents are leaving their cars at home and exploring alternate ways to get around town. According to the PBOT report, now that TNCs are an option in Portland, “data suggests that consumer demand is being better served.”

  • Ridesharing demand peaks during the late evening hours from 8:00pm – 11:00pm and on the weekends — when Portlanders need a safe ride home from being out on the town.

On top of serving weekday commuters, ridesharing is meeting a different type of demand: Portlanders looking for safe, reliable rides while enjoying a night out. Portland’s legendary late-night entertainment leads to high demand on nights and weekends, and ridesharing continues to get people home safe during those times.

It’s no wonder Uber has helped reduce DUI arrests (up to 10% in Seattle) and DUI fatalities (by a minimum of 3.6% in California) in many places we operate.

We are excited about the progress we’ve made toward bringing permanent ridesharing regulations to Portland, and we look forward to continuing our work in the community to cut down on drunk driving, serve underserved communities, increase transit to small businesses and help drive the local economy.