Self-driving trucks begin mail delivery test for U.S. Postal Service

Re:Self-driving trucks begin mail delivery test for U.S. Pos... by noer on Tuesday May 21, 2019 @10:33AM (#19970484)

The other part about increasing postage is that people are asked to pay more, but they don't necessarily see an improvement in the service that comes with the postage. I think about this a lot with public transit too, what a lot of people pay at the farebox doesn't necessarily cover the cost of the ride.

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Re:Self-driving trucks begin mail delivery test for U.S. Pos... by zaroth on Tuesday May 21, 2019 @02:30PM (#19973218)

Fairbox recovery rates [1] in the US tend to be around 15-20%. The rest is made up from public subsidies. In the most heavily utilized subway systems, the ratio can increase to around 50% (NYC). [1]

It depends how you count the revenue, but by some accounts public transit is more heavily subsidized by State and Federal government than driving. This is especially true on a per-passenger-mile basis.

[1] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farebox_recovery_ratio

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Re:Self-driving trucks begin mail delivery test for U.S. Pos... by firethief on Tuesday May 21, 2019 @02:18PM (#19973064)

Isn't the marginal cost of a rider nearly zero? What kind of public transit are we talking about?

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