“They are out there in force at the worst possible times,” said Prof Christo Wilson, a computer scientist at Northeastern University, who has also studied the services. He refers to Uber’s traffic data, which ‘perfectly matches the peaks for the rush hour.’ He also adds that the low fares and convenience mean that people are ordering rides to go from A to B when they wouldn’t normally. Both help contribute to the gridlock.

So what can be done to stop traffic from backing up or bottlenecking? One solution involves combining ride-hailing with sharing. Many ride-hailing companies, such as Uber, Didi Chuxing in China and Ola in India enable customers to carpool. This allows travellers who share similar destinations to share the journey. The app enables an en route pickup,which means more streamlined traffic, and less time spent with an empty vehicle.

Could this decongest the world’s jam-packed roads? It is certainly one solution. But maybe we shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss the more traditional public transport options. "Congestion is a really complicated issue," said Andrew Salzberg, head of Uber's transport policy. But, “There is no more efficient way to move people around than public transport," he added. So don’t do away with that bus pass just yet.

词汇表 flag down 挥手拦车

ride-hailing 叫车服务

traffic flow 交通流量

traffic jam 交通堵塞

【The congestion caused by ride-hailing 叫车软件造成的交通拥堵难题】相关文章：

★ Connection and link 两个表示“关系”的单词

★ Distinguished 和 distinguishable 之间的区别

★ Old-school 老一套，老派

★ The good of gardening 园艺疗法益心养神

★ The dangers that lurk in your bathroom 可爱的橡皮鸭可能危害健康

★ The rise of the emoji 表情符号的兴起

★ Zika virus, Rare whale filmed in Australia 寨卡病毒传播风险，澳大利亚拍到罕见鲸鱼影像

★ Dangerous heartbeat, Spike Lee and the Oscars 危险的心跳，斯派克·李抵制奥斯卡

★ The niche food festivals of the UK 英国多种多样的小众美食节

★ Promote，press ahead 和 strive for 三个表达的运用