Zipping around town telling a car where to go is a lovely luxury and all, but let’s face it — not everyone can afford to pay for a solo drive all the time. While you can already split rides with a friend traveling in your same car, soon Uber users will be able to share rides with perfect strangers using Uber Pool. [More]
ride-sharing
Uber Passenger Complains Of Spider Bite In “Filthy” Car
By 7.30.14
On Friday, the state of North Carolina received its first complaint against the app-based ride-sharing service Uber. The customer’s complaint? His driver arrived late in a “filthy” vehicle, and there were spiders inside the car. Which bit him. The spiders, that is, not the car. As far as we know. [More]
Lyft Is Too Successful In New York City, No Cars Available
By 7.28.14
In New York City, early adopters of the car-summoning smartphone app Lyft got a special gift: fifty free rides with a fare of up to $25 each in the first fifteen days that the service is open for business. It’s an impressive promotion…or it would be if there were any drivers available. [More]
New York State Attorney General Tries To Shut Down Lyft Before Tonight’s NYC Launch
By 7.11.14
Seven hours from now, people in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens were supposed to be able to dial up a vehicle from ride-sharing service Lyft and coast through traffic in a cloud of peer-to-peer vehicular bliss. “Not so fast!” the New York state government said to the service, its drivers, and their pink-mustachioed cars. [More]
San Antonio Police Watching For New Public Menace: Lyft Drivers
By 3.27.14
Out of all of the issues that people who drive for ride-sharing services might have, we didn’t imagine this one: wondering whether your next passenger is a cop. Yet Lyft drivers in San Antonio received that warning from the city’s chief of police. Could other cities where these apps are doing battle with governments that regulate taxi medallions do the same? [More]
Uber And Lyft Expand Insurance, Now Cover Drivers Between Jobs
By 3.14.14
UberX and Lyft are services that let ordinary drivers ferry strangers around for extra cash. When there’s a crash or other disaster, there can be a gap between where the driver’s personal auto insurance coverage ends and the ride-sharing service’s coverage for drivers begins. Today, competitors UberX and Lyft announced extra insurance for drivers who are technically off-duty. [More]
California Becomes The First State To Give The Okay To Ride-Sharing Regulations
By 9.20.13
California has become the first state in the nation to give an official thumbs up to ride-sharing companies, via a decision to let those businesses continue to put passengers in drivers’ cars if the companies comply with a set of regulations. This is not welcome news in the traditional taxi industry, which has been fighting the upward momentum of companies like Uber Technologies and Lyft. [More]
Ride-Share Service Accuses NYC Of Cooking Up Sting Operation To Discourage Legal Activity
By 5.1.13
In New York City, only licensed yellow cabs are allowed to make curbside pick-ups, though countless no-name cabs and rogue car service drivers regularly take the risk of being fined just to score a fare. But the folks at a ride-sharing service claim that NYC’s Taxi & Limousine Commission are unfairly attacking users of the service, which the company believes is perfectly legal. [More]
