Rideshare in Massachusetts

In 2018, rideshare companies, also called transportation network companies (TNCs), provided 81.3 million rides in Massachusetts, approximately 25% more than in 2017. This increase happened across the state, in towns and cities of all sizes and types.

Massachusetts law requires rideshare companies to share data with the Commonwealth. The companies also pay an assessment, 20 cents per ride, that is distributed among cities and towns, Massachusetts’s general transportation fund, and the taxi and livery industry. In 2017, these fees amounted to more than $12 million, and in 2018, more than $16 million. See how your municipality allocated the funds it received last year.

This report includes an interactive summary of the 2018 rideshare data. You can explore how people in your city or town use rideshare services, such as how many rides began where you live and where they ended. You’ll also learn how population density and other factors affect ridesharing. You can also download data behind this summary or view the 2017 report.


Data Source: Department of Public Utilities (DPU)

2018 Growth in Ridesharing Across Massachusetts

In 2018, there were about 81.3 million TNC ridessee footnote[1]in Massachusetts – 25% more than the 64.8 million in 2017. This increase happened throughout the state. The largest increases in numbers of rides from 2017 to 2018 happened in Boston (7.3 million more), Cambridge (1 million more), and Somerville (almost 600,000 more).

However, many smaller towns with smaller numbers of rides saw a much larger percentage increase in rides when compared to 2017 ridership. For example, in Provincetown, ridesharing companies reported 48,862 rides in 2018, or 181% more rides than 2017. The data shows similar growth for Ayer (5,848 rides in 2018 and +172% growth), Pittsfield (27,189 rides and +167% growth), and New Bedford (164,937 rides and +155% growth).

Percent Change in Rides Started by Municipality

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Total Rides and Rides Per Person in 2018

There were approximately 7 billion household passenger vehicle trips in 2018 across Massachusettssee footnote[6]. While 81.3 million rideshares make up a small percentage of overall passenger car trips, the data suggests that TNC use has become an important thread in the fabric of Massachusetts transportation, especially when it comes to getting around cities and to the airport. For example:

  • 80% of all TNC rides in Massachusetts began in Suffolk and Middlesex Counties
  • 42.2 million rides began in Boston – the most of any city or town. Cambridge, where 7.8 million rides began, is second on this list.
  • TNC rides to and from Boston Logan International Airport totaled approximately 7 millionsee footnote[3], and are included in the total number of rides in Boston. There were almost 4.1 million TNC rides to the Airport, and 2.9 million TNC rides leaving the Airport.
  • More people used ridesharing to leave urban centers like Cambridge, Somerville, Brookline, Springfield, and Worcester than to enter them. (This is true for Boston, too, when we remove the airport.)
  • For reference, there were 397.7 million public transit rides in 2018.see footnote[2]

2018 Total Rides Started by Municipality

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You can also view this map with overlays for public transportation and major highways, as well as labels for colleges and universities.

Table of Total Rides Started and Rides Started Per Person by Municipality

Use this table to explore the TNC rideshare data. You can sort by column headings, or use the search bar to look for a town or city you’re interested in.

Speed and Length of Rides

Rideshare Speed by Municipality

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Footnotes

  1. Data pertains only to TNC rides that took place transporting individuals. Other TNC behaviors, such as travel without a passenger or food delivery are not included in this report.
  2. Data provided by Massachusetts Department of Transportation (see https://massdottracker.com for more infomration).
  3. Data provided by Boston Logan International Airport.
  4. Population data to determine per person rates are from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) published by the U.S. Census Bureau.
  5. Averages were calculated by weighting TNC-reported trip length and distance by ride counts.
  6. Estimate based on the Massachusetts Department of Transportation 2011 Household Travel Survey and the UMass Donahue Institute’s 2018 Long-Term Population Projections for Massachusetts Regions and Municipalities.