Editor's note: This article first appeared on CarInsurance.com and is reprinted here with their permission. Click here for the original post.

Owning and driving your own vehicle may eventually take a back seat to using alternative forms of transportation in the most connected cities in the country.

Car sharing, ride sharing, bike sharing, public transportation apps and a host of other transportation and technology options are expected to help fuel the trend away from automobile ownership.

Principle U.S. cities are rated for their options and technology in "The Innovative Transportation Index: The Cities Where New Technologies and Tools Can Reduce Your Need to Own a Car," published by the U.S. PIRG Education Fund and the Frontier Group.

The ranking looks at 70 key U.S. cities. It includes the primary cities in the 50 biggest U.S. metro areas, as well as the largest city in each state that doesn't have one of the largest metro areas.

No longer necessary to own your own car

With a wide range of transportation options and technology solutions, "people don't necessarily have to own their own car in order to have mobility in cities," says Phineas Baxandall, transportation program director at the U.S. PIRG Education Fund.

The report looks solely at which cities have the most tech tools that make it easiest to get around without owning a vehicle, Baxandall cautions. It doesn't gauge which cities have the best public transportation or other transportation alternatives.

In the report's ranking, Austin, Texas, holds the top spot. It's the only city where all 11 of the tech tools and options are available. San Francisco holds the No. 2 spot, with Washington, D.C., a close third.

The study looks at cities by the number of options available and the number of service providers.

The options and technology studied are:

Car sharing – Consumers use the Internet to reserve cars for daily or hourly use, access them with radio frequency identification (RFID)-enabled cards and use them for round trips or one-way trips. Companies such as Zipcar offer this service.

Peer-to-Peer Car Sharing – An Internet-based service is used to pair up individuals who want to rent out there cars with those who want to rent them. "Turo" (Formerly RelayRide) is the largest such service.

Ride Sharing – The newest model, offered by Carma, involves drivers and riders using a smartphone app to arrange shared rides in real time. The driver receives a small per-mile fee from the passenger to help cover costs.

Ride Sourcing – These are similar to taxis and passengers can arrange a ride with a driver using their smartphone. Passengers pay via an app. The best known of these firms are Uber and Lyft.

Taxi Hailing – Services such as Curb let passengers find and call taxis with their smartphones. In some cases payment is made using a smartphone.

Bike Sharing – GPS and RFID are used to track bikes. The services charge more for longer rides, encouraging riders to use the bikes for commuting, errands or short trips.

Static Data – This provides bus schedules and route maps online or via mobile devices. It's designed to help riders navigate public transportation, even when they're on the go.

Real-Time Transit Information – GPS is used to help riders use smartphone apps such as NextBus to keep track of service in real time so they'll know how long they'll have to wait till their bus or train arrives.

Multi-Modal Trip Planning – Apps are used to pull together information so travelers can find the fastest, cheapest, most convenient mode of transportation. RideScout is one of the apps providing such service.

Virtual Ticketing – Riders can buy tickets through a device such as a smartphone. Mobile devices can reduce lines at ticket sales locations and riders don't need to carry cash.

Not-so-wired cities

At the bottom of the list, with just one service and one provider, are Billings, Montana; Cheyenne, Wyoming; Charleston, West Virginia; and Fargo, North Dakota.

But even in these less populated cities, as well as suburban and rural areas, technology can help reduce reliance on automobile ownership, Baxandall says. Car sharing, P2P car sharing and ride sharing may all be viable options. Or in areas with occasional bus service, it would be easier to use if a rider knew exactly when a bus was going to arrive at a stop.

Millennials, who are the most connected generation and rely heavily on their smartphones, are driving this trend for technology-enabled transportation. "It's less of a mental leap," as compared to other generations, Baxandall says.

But aging baby boomers could have a major role to play in furthering this trend, he says. "A lot of folks are less comfortable with driving as time goes on. It could be more important in the future for baby boomers."

Driving less may earn you a low mileage discount

Relying less on your own automobile can also help cut your car insurance bill, says Penny Gusner, consumer analyst for Insure.com.

If you drive less because of car sharing, or you rely on public transportation, you might be eligible for a low mileage discount, which typically averages between 5% and 15%, Gusner says.

One insurer may offer a discount if you drive less than 5,000 miles a year, while another may give a discount if you drive less than 10,000 miles each year.

If you give up your vehicle but plan to have one again, you should consider a non-owner's insurance policy so you maintain coverage. "Auto insurance providers don't like a lapse in coverage so it's wise to pay for non-owner coverage, which is much less expensive than coverage tied to a car, to keep your future car insurance premiums lower," Gusner says.

It's also a good idea to have non-owner's insurance if you borrow friends' cars on occasion. Although your friends' insurance will provide primary coverage if you get in a wreck, your policy will cover you if the accident exceeds your friends' policy limits. "It can keep you from being left paying out of your own pocket for damages to others," she says.

Keep reading to see the top 20 cities with alternative transportation technology.

Austin, Texas

Special Reports /

Here are the top 20 most wired cities for transportation

Related Stories

Recommended For You