Uber Executives Say Driver's Licenses and Private Cars May Become Unnecessary in 15 to 20 Years

Uber Technologies President and Chief Operating Officer Andrew Macdonald said people’s travel habits could change completely over the next 15 to 20 years, with most people using bicycles, scooters, public transit, or autonomous cars. According to Sina Finance, he said no one would need to own a private car or even a driver's license, and added that public transit would play an important role. Macdonald said new-car prices have surged 30% over the past six years and argued that private cars are inefficient assets because they sit idle 98% of the day while continuing to depreciate and generate ongoing costs such as insurance. He also said Uber has abandoned plans to build its own autonomous fleet and is increasingly positioning itself as an operating platform for autonomous vehicles, working with companies including Waymo and Waabi. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi made a similar forecast, saying most trips will eventually no longer require a human driver. He said earlier this year on a podcast that most ride requests could be handled by some kind of robot, though he added that this may not happen for another 15 to 20 years. Khosrowshahi said autonomous cars are already being rolled out in many major cities. Uber is paying drivers to train AI models, while Lyft is paying former drivers to clean autonomous vehicles that have begun taking over some ride-hailing work.