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Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

nytimes.com

31–40 of 100 posts

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#31
> There are already apps like Citymapper that help commuters figure out the best way to navigate between two points in a city. But Lyft and Uber have the advantage of actually running some of the transport networks that can be used to make those trips happen, and would like users to never leave their platforms.

Citymapper is starting to run it's own transport in London. It has/had a smart bus and now operates a smaller version

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#32
post #5

I wonder how Lyft and Uber have avoided ADA requirements.

Both offer wheelchair accessible cars. I'm not sure what the formal ADA rule should be on them, but offering these services seems to work out for everyone.

The people who are suing Uber would disagree:

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/07/18/nyregion/uber-disabili...

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At which point people would outrage and the government buys it out for political capital. Still sounds like a win win to me.

Sorry but when has this happened? Which government?

Buys is the most suspect word in that. Seems more likely the kind of government that would do that is more the type to seize the company. I'm skeptical, like you, that this would end positively.

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sure it would be great until they captured the market then raised prices and started sharing your data with 3rd parties as an additional way to monetize.

>started sharing your data with 3rd parties as an additional way to monetize. Germany's national broadcaster Deutsche Welle produced an excellent documentary looking at the exact same scenario you described. [0] It looked into the possibility of making short-haul transportation (focusing primarily on Hyperloop) virtually free with just one caveat: a precondition that users share all their private data that advertiser…

Am I the only one who wouldn't mind a responsible way for people to target me with things I don't know about which I might be interested in?

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#35
post #3

i sure wouldn't mind some vc-subsidized underground trains. maybe if they became competitive rapid transit operators as well, the world could become a better place

This happened with trains in the 19th century and it was an absolute disaster. Please learn your history on privatized public goods. It results in massive fragmentation in standards, extreme levels of corruption and an overall worse experience for most people.

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sure it would be great until they captured the market then raised prices and started sharing your data with 3rd parties as an additional way to monetize.

>started sharing your data with 3rd parties as an additional way to monetize. Germany's national broadcaster Deutsche Welle produced an excellent documentary looking at the exact same scenario you described. [0] It looked into the possibility of making short-haul transportation (focusing primarily on Hyperloop) virtually free with just one caveat: a precondition that users share all their private data that advertiser…

Wouldn't that violate the provision of the GDPR where you still have to provide access, even if the end-user rejects the permissions?

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#37

> There are already apps like Citymapper that help commuters figure out the best way to navigate between two points in a city. But Lyft and Uber have the advantage of actually running some of the transport networks that can be used to make those trips happen, and would like users to never leave their platforms. Citymapper is starting to run it's own transport in London. It has/had a smart bus and now operates a small…

Indeed and it's a great experience, comes up as a recommendation when searching for a route and acts like a hybrid between a bus and an Uber. CityMapper also shows dockless bikes now and it would be extremely surprising if they didn't get into the bike/scooter space too.

The convergence is fascinating.

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Both offer wheelchair accessible cars. I'm not sure what the formal ADA rule should be on them, but offering these services seems to work out for everyone.

The people who are suing Uber would disagree: https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/07/18/nyregion/uber-disabili...

I would guess that no matter what they did they would be sued.

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#39
I get the pitch.

Customer wishes to go from A to B. Ride-sharing app will plan the trip and charge for each leg, because they own them all.

Personally, I don't think it's ever going to work that way, at least not on a single locked-in platform, and I think this is all hot air, fed by hot quantitative-easing cash.

Re: Lyft and Uber Won’t Be Happy Until They’re Your One-Stop Transit Guide

#40
post #3

i sure wouldn't mind some vc-subsidized underground trains. maybe if they became competitive rapid transit operators as well, the world could become a better place

This happened with trains in the 19th century and it was an absolute disaster. Please learn your history on privatized public goods. It results in massive fragmentation in standards, extreme levels of corruption and an overall worse experience for most people.

We know about the downsides now. For example, the New York system was private and actually paid for itself. New York subsidized the system. Now it's inefficient, poorly maintained, and expensive due to excessive salaries. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPhC3-9mSb4
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