More Canadians prefer taking taxis to Uber, says Angus Reid study

While ride-hailing services like Uber have become ubiquitous in Canada, there are many Canadians who aren’t quite on board with them.

In fact, according to a new study by the Angus Reid Institute, 39 percent of Canadians say they’d rather call a taxi, compared to 29 percent who say they prefer Uber.

That said, the Angus Reid study noted that these numbers would wildly differ depending on the demographic they were polling.

For instance, 49 percent of Millennial men and 43 percent of Millennial women say they would rather use the Uber app than call a cab.

Likewise, usage of Uber varies greatly depending on age group; 29 percent of Canadians in the 18 to 24 and 25 to 34 age groups say they’ve used Uber, compared to only 23 percent of 35 to 44 year olds, and much less for elder aged people.

Factoring in all age groups, general public opinion on Uber was somewhat scattered as well. According to Angus Reid, 49 percent of Canadians hold a positive view of Uber, compared to 28 percent who have a negative perception of the company, and 23 percent who have no opinion or are unsure.

Further, while 34 percent of Canadians say that Uber “should should definitely be allowed to operate in their community regardless of regulatory confines,” a further 42 percent of Canadians say they’d be open to this only “under the right circumstances.” Overall, two-thirds of Canadians say ride-hailing services like Uber need to be regulated in the same way that taxis are.

To gather these findings, the Angus Reid Institute says it conducted an online survey from February 15th — 19th, 2018, among a representative randomized sample of 2,501 Canadian adults who are members of the Angus Reid Forum.

Source: Angus Reid Institute