年轻一代爱上拼车

    合伙用车和拼车平台填补了这一空白。2012年6月，SideCar的司机就已经完成了1万次搭载，而到12月，这一数字上升至10万。RelayRides在全美1200多个城市拥有供出租的汽车，所有城市从去年起增加了车辆数量。Flywheel的出租车订车软件安装在国内3000辆出租车中，供应商可能将在三月底使用“在线呼叫”技术，软件的使用范围将迅速扩散至纽约。Zipcar拥有超过76万名会员，并在一月被Avis以5亿美元收购。

    当然，经济萧条时期出现的合伙用车和拼车服务的潮流也在与复苏的汽车产业竞争——美国2012年的汽车销量比2011年上升了13%。以上升21%的克莱斯勒（Chrysler）为首，美国三大汽车巨头销量皆有提升。分享经济的支持者并非过去几年中唯一尝试降低持车成本的人群——经济衰退时期，汽车代理商向顾客提供比银行更低利息的购车贷款，努力打消他们的购车恐惧。

    拼车也在挑战国家法律的界限。去年秋天，加州公共事业委员会（CPUC）对使用Lyft应用的Uber、SideCar和Zimride处以了2万美元的罚金。大约同时，CPUC还对SideCar和Lyft发出了禁止令，Uber则在2010年收到了禁止函。去年10月，Uber退出纽约市场，声称受到了计程车管理委员会（Taxi and Limousine Commission）的“阻碍”。（去年12月纽约市同意了使用“在线招车”应用，而计程车管理委员会由于试图阻止本月即将开展的在线招车项目，遭到了Livery汽车集团的起诉。）在加州，由于国家开启了“过渡立法阶段”，以决定如何更好地应对这种新的交通方式，CPUC对Lyft和Uber罚款于一月暂缓。协议还规定拼车暂时合法化。Uber目前只将乘客与拥有商业许可的出租车和城镇汽车司机配对，公司发博文表示打算在拼车业务上加入Lyft和Sidebar。

    保罗称，关于政府对待拼车服务公司的态度，出租车运营公司颇多微词，而其他传统的交通业参与者也会很快注意到合伙用车和拼车平台的兴起。在合伙用车领域拥有十年丰富经验的Zipcar公司今年年初被Avis收购，已有迹象表明Avis将对Zipcar进行改造。哈达德说，迄今为止，RelayRides尚未与任何租车服务公司有过联系，不过已经获得了汽车业巨头通用汽车（General Motors）的支持。该公司的投资部门通用汽车风险投资公司（GM Venture）为其提供资金帮助。

    在当今的交通版图上，不同的共享团体已经开始各司其职，看起来似乎每个人都有发挥的空间。汉弗莱说：“作为供应商，我们需要关注的是说服消费者，打消他们购买汽车的念头，为使他们达到目的地提供各种选择。”（财富中文网）

    译者：严匡正

    Carsharing and ridesharing platforms have stepped in to fill the void. SideCar drivers had completed 10,000 rides in July of 2012; by December that figure rose to 100,000. RelayRides has cars for rent in more than 1,200 cities across the country, all of them added since last year. Flywheel's taxi hailing software is in 3,000 taxis across the country, and will soon expand into New York City when vendors begin using "e-hail" technology, possibly at the end of March. Zipcar has more than 760,000 members and was acquired by Avis for $500 million in January.

    Of course, this stream of carsharing and ridesharing services that cropped up during the recession is also competing with a rejuvenated auto industry -- U.S. car sales were up 13% in 2012 over 2011. All three major U.S. automakers showed improved sales led by Chrysler's 21% jump last year. And sharing economy proponents aren't the only ones who have been trying to make car ownership cheaper the last few years -- during the recession, car dealerships worked hard to stifle ownership fears by offering customers lower interest rates on car loans than the banks.

    Ridesharing is also testing the bounds set up by state law. Last fall, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) levied $20,000 fines against Uber, SideCar, and Zimride, which operates the Lyft app. The CPUC issued a cease and desist to both SideCar and Lyft around the same time; Uber received its cease and desist letter in 2010. In October, Uber pulled out of New York City, citing "roadblocks" from the city's Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC). (The city approved "e-hail" apps in December, but the TLC is now being sued by Livery car groups in an attempt to stop the e-hail program, which could start this month.) In California, the CPUC fines for Lyft and Uber were suspended in January as the state began an "interim rulemaking period" to determine how best to approach this new avenue of transportation. The agreement specified that ridesharing was also temporarily legal. In a blog post, Uber, which currently only matches up passengers with commercially licensed taxi or town car drivers, announced intentions to join Lyft and SideCar in the ridesharing business.

    According to Paul, taxi operators provide the majority of complaints to the state regarding competitor ridesharing services, and other established transportation players will soon take notice of these carsharing and ridesharing platforms if they haven't already. Avis (CAR) showed signs of adaptation when it purchased Zipcar, a carsharing veteran at just over a decade old, at the beginning of the year. RelayRides hasn't made contact with any rental services to date, says Haddad, but has gotten support from one major automaker: General Motors (GM). GM Ventures, the corporation's investment arm, is a financial backer.

    Different sharing communities have begun to carve out their respective roles in the modern transportation landscape, and it appears as if there is room for everybody -- for now. "What we need to be focused on as vendors," says Humphreys, "is getting consumers around, getting them to not want to own a car, and getting them all the alternatives they want to get their hired rides."