Study suggests Uber reduces DWI deaths

NEW YORK - Available now in 50 countries, Uber's popularity continues to soar. One estimate puts Uber's projected profits for 2016 at over $26 billion. Uber is a mobile app-based service through which consumers can call for a car to and from any destination. We know Uber is convenient, but now a recent study, done by two Temple University professors, suggests Uber has also helped save lives.

With Uber-X you don't get a luxury car, but the service is cheaper. Professor Sunil Wattal analyzed California Highway Patrol data from 2009 to 2014. The researchers found that Uber-X's effects on drunk driving began to manifest just 9 to 15 months after Uber was introduced. Data showed that 3.6 percent to 5.6 percent reduction in drunken driving deaths in California is associated with Uber-X.

Wattal said that it is hard to generalize, but he estimates that as many as 15,000 lives have been saved nationwide. Wattal also pointed out that many yellow cabs refuse to go to the outer boroughs, but Uber does so he believes without a doubt Uber is also helping save lives here in New York as well.

Uber's general manager for New York City, Josh Mohrer, was not surprised by the study's findings.