Public/Private Partnerships in Transit: Case Studies and Analysis

With the emergence of new business models for transportation services in the private, new types of partnerships between the public and private sector have also started to emerge. In this report, we focus on public/private partnerships that involve transportation network companies (TNCs), such as Uber and Lyft. We first discuss the structure of these partnerships in terms of the type of service provider, category of service, and payment arrangement. We then provide an in-depth discussion of five case studies, selected to highlight unique and distinctive features in each case. We draw lessons and takeaways from these case studies, highlighting opportunities and challenges for the future. We also discuss opportunities for the Twin Cities and the greater Minnesota region. In doing so, we provide analysis of travel behavior data and show how this analysis can be used to guide the deployment of a public/private partnership. One limitation of these case studies is that access for persons with disabilities, compliance with regulations, and protection of civil rights was not clearly articulated in these pilot programs and greater understanding of these areas is needed.