[Villages Kahuna]

People have often referred to either Uber or Lyft as alternatives to owning a car for local transportation here in The Villages.

I downloaded the two apps yesterday and checked the cost of a couple of local rides. Uber’s price for a pickup at Spanish Springs for a trip to Cane Garden CC is $17.15… from The Sharon to Rohan Rec Center is $22.61.

Checking Lyft’s pricing for the same trips shows $17.77 from the Sharon to Cane Garden CC and $27.73 to Rohan Rec Center.

I thought both Uber and Lyft were supposed to be economical alternatives to other forms of transportation. Those prices sure don’t sound very economical to me.

If someone living near Rohan wanted to go to a show at The Sharon—about $50 round trip, plus tips both ways, doesn’t sound like an attractive transportation alternative to me. What would that be, $60-65 round trip including a tip? That’s approaching the cost of two tickets to lots of shows at The Sharon.

If someone living near Spanish Springs wanted to go out to Cane Garden for lunch or dinner, the cost to get there and back might be as much as the cost of meals for two people .

Thoughts? Alternatives?