Ride-Hailing’s Climate Risks

The report analyzes the climate impact of transportation network companies (TNCs) in seven major U.S. cities. It finds that non-pooled ride-hailing trips emit 47% more than private vehicle trips of the same length, largely due to 'deadheading' (driving without passengers). When accounting for the modes of transport that ride-hailing displaces—including mass transit, walking, and biking—typical ride-hailing trips are approximately 69% more polluting than the trips they replace. The analysis suggests that a transition to electric vehicles and an increase in pooling rates to 50% could reduce these emissions by 52% relative to displaced trips.

• Non-pooled ride-hailing trips in current vehicles produce 47% more emissions than a private vehicle trip of the same length.
• Ride-hailing trips are approximately 69% more polluting than the transportation modes they displace.
• Deadheading—miles driven while waiting for or traveling to a passenger—accounts for an average of 41.8% of the total trip length for TNCs across the seven studied cities.
• A significant portion of ride-hailing users would have used lower-carbon alternatives if TNCs were unavailable; in California, 24% of non-pooled and 36% of pooled trips would have been by mass transit, walking, biking, or not taken at all.
• The adoption of electric vehicles and an increase in pooling to 50% could reduce emissions by 52% compared to the trips currently displaced by ride-hailing.
• Ride-hailing ridership in the United States has grown rapidly, with TNC trips increasing from 0.0 billion in 2012 to 3.2 billion in 2018, while taxi ridership declined from 1.4 billion in 2012 to 0.7 billion in 2018.

APA

de Moura, M. C. P., Anair, D., Martin, J., & Goldman, J. (2020). Ride-Hailing’s Climate Risks. Union of Concerned Scientists. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2020-02/Ride-Hailings-Climate-Risks-Methodology_0.pdf

Chicago

de Moura, Maria Cecilia Pinto, Don Anair, Jeremy Martin, and Joshua Goldman. Ride-Hailing’s Climate Risks. Union of Concerned Scientists, 2020. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2020-02/Ride-Hailings-Climate-Risks-Methodology_0.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=de Moura |first1=Maria Cecilia Pinto |last2=Anair |first2=Don |last3=Martin |first3=Jeremy |last4=Goldman |first4=Joshua |title=Ride-Hailing’s Climate Risks |publisher=Union of Concerned Scientists |date=February 2020 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2020-02/Ride-Hailings-Climate-Risks-Methodology_0.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{demoura2020ridehailings, author = {de Moura, Maria Cecilia Pinto and Anair, Don and Martin, Jeremy and Goldman, Joshua}, title = {{Ride-Hailing’s Climate Risks}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2020}, month = feb, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2020-02/Ride-Hailings-Climate-Risks-Methodology_0.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }