Lyft Goes After Uber’s Business Users With New “Lux” Service

Image courtesy of Lyft

While Uber has long courted business commuters with its premium UberBlack and UberXL, competitor Lyft’s comparable offerings didn’t match up. Now Lyft hopes to drink some of Uber’s corporate client milkshake with the rollout of new Lux and SUV tiers of service.

The ride-hailing company will be offering a more upscale experience in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, and San Jose called Lyft Lux and Lyft SUV, ostensibly to lure in business folks and people who don’t have a chauffeur but still want to arrive wherever they’re going in style.

While the company already has a premium service called Lyft Premiere, cars in these new programs have to be not only higher-end vehicles, but they must have a black exterior, and leather or “leather-like” seats.

Besides the required paint color, drivers will have to use a car on Lyft’s list [PDF] of eligible vehicles, which includes a slew of luxury options, from Bentleys to Volvos and everything in between.

For both Lyft Lux and Lyft Premiere, drivers are required to maintain a 4.7 or higher rating on the platform.

Of course, Uber has offered a few upscale options for years, depending on where you live: UberBLACK (black cars with professional drivers), UberSUV (larger luxury vehicles driven by pros), and UberLux, (luxury cars with professional drivers).

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