Lyft and Uber said they will cease operations in Minneapolis after the city’s council voted Thursday to override a mayoral veto and require that ride-hailing services increase driver wages to the equivalent of the local minimum wage of $15.57 an hour.
Lyft called the ordinance “deeply flawed,” saying in a statement that it supports a minimum earning standard for drivers but not the one passed by the council.
Their only edge over taxi companies was their ability to avoid current labor laws.
I don’t know if taxi companies have upped their online game, but Uber and Lyft’s huge advantage used to be that the customer could see what the ride would cost them, when their ride would arrive, and pay online. Those of us old enough can remember days when you’d worry about whether a taxi driver was going to take the scenic route, whether you’d have enough cash, whether they’d accept a credit card, whether they’d add some surcharge to credit card transactions, and then having to trust your credit card to yet another random stranger. Having to use taxis used to be a reliable source of stress when traveling; Uber utterly removed that (if you were male; I know women have additional sources of angst when getting into cars with strangers).
If Taxi companies have gotten their online shit together, where I can see the entire transaction - times and costs - in advance, then yeah, I’ll agree with you. But originally, Uber and Lyft were huge game changers for customers.
Taxis have upped their app game. And a lot of people prefer taxis and drivers who actually know where they are going. Uber and Lyft started by discounting rides and paying for them with VC money. After they took enough taxi market share they had to switch to making a profit so they took it from driver pay. Their only path for making a profit is their ability to skirt labor laws. That’s why they want to pull out of markets that force them to pay drivers better.
You’ve convinced me. I’ll never take Uber or Lyft again.
Tell me one thing: if I’m visit some city, whether in the US or elsewhere, is there a reliable taxi app that works pretty much everywhere, or do I have to search for a local one?