Uber, Lyft gain market share at Logan

A SIX-MONTH STUDY of traffic patterns at Logan International Airport generally confirms what earlier data suggested – that transportation network companies such as Uber, Lyft, and most recently Wingz are gaining market share but taxis and public transit are holding their own. 

The data indicate the transportation network companies increased their share of the Logan passenger market from 12.5 percent in February to 18.4 percent in June. “All other modes are generally flat or only slightly impacted up or down,” said the report prepared by the Massachusetts Port Authority. 

Perhaps the most surprising element of the report was the fact that usage of taxis, limos, and transportation network companies rose dramatically over the six-month period. In 2016, the three modes sent an average of 9,508 vehicles to the airport every day over the six-month period. In 2017, they sent 12,191 vehicles, an increase of 28 percent. CommonWealth reported on the changing traffic patterns in early June. 

Even with more people being chauffered to and from Logan, the number of people using public transit remained fairly steady. Passengers on Logan Express buses from Braintree, Framingham, Peabody, and Woburn were down 5 percent in June, while traffic from the Blue Line was down 0.7 percent over the entire six-month period. There was almost no change in passenger traffic on Silver Line buses, according to data snapshots on specific days. 

Thomas Glynn, the CEO of Massport, said the previous six months were an atypical period in some respects so the numbers could change in the future. During the last six months, the Commonwealth Avenue bridge was shut down, which affected Turnpike traffic; the Sumner Tunnel tolls were removed; and the system for handling transportation network companies was introduced. 

Massport requires transportation network companies to operate out of pool lots at the airport serving individual terminals. The authority charges drivers $3.25 per vehicle pickup.