Politics & Government

by Harry Campbell on June 20, 2016 16 Comments

Would Uber and Lyft Really Pull Out of Chicago?

Update (6/20/16): Looks like Uber and Lyft may be safe for now. Ald. Beale has agreed to ‘study’ the fingerprinting issue for 6 months and will not require rideshare services to fingerprint their drivers – for now.

This Wednesday, the Chicago City Council will vote on an ordinance that could force Uber and Lyft to pull out of the city indefinitely. If this story sounds familiar, it should. Over the past year, Uber and Lyft have waged regulatory battles in several high profile locales (New York, Broward County, etc), and neither company is currently operating in Austin due to a recent fingerprinting requirement imposed by the city council.

We actually traveled to Austin a couple weeks ago to see the situation first-hand, and now it looks like Chicago might be next. Many municipalities have tried to impose stricter taxi-like regulations over the past year, and it’s been a huge sticking point for the TNCs. In fact, anything that involves fingerprinting of drivers or impediments to on-boarding is likely to elicit pull-out threats from Uber and Lyft since these companies rely on being able to churn and burn through their workforce. By Uber’s own admission, they lose half of all drivers after just 12 months and, when you factor in their growth, they need to hire at least 60,000 new drivers every single month (according to my calculations) just to run efficiently.

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by Harry Campbell on June 10, 2016 44 Comments

7 Things I Learned From Our Week In Austin

When Uber and Lyft pulled out of Austin last month, they made it seem like the world was going to end without them. And while there was tumult in the few weeks after their departure, no less than ~~seven~~ ~~eight~~ nine rideshare start-ups have since moved in to Austin to try and fill that void.

Last week, Christian and I headed to the capital of Texas to talk with local politicians, meet with some of the start-ups looking to take Uber/Lyft’s place and, of course, hear from drivers. We learned a lot about the situation on the ground, and today I’m going to summarize it all.

Christian and I meeting with Austin Councilman Don Zimmerman (photo cred: RSG Reader Anthony N)

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by Christian Perea on June 8, 2016 35 Comments

RSG Special Report: How’s Austin Doing Without Uber And Lyft?

Harry here. The battle in Austin has been a huge story over the past month, so Christian and I decided to head to the city that ‘Keeps it Weird’ for four days to see what life is like now that Uber and Lyft are gone. It turns out that there are a slew of rideshare companies looking to take Uber/Lyft’s place, and they’re doing a lot better than we expected.

Today, RSG senior contributor Christian Perea breaks down what it takes for these companies to make a name for themselves and reviews seven of the biggest options in Austin: Wingz, Get Me, Fare, Arcade City, RideAustin, Fasten and InstaRyde.

Austin rideshare is on fire right now. The Big Two are gone and watching from the sidelines with a nervous glance as new companies rampage through a market that they have spent tens of millions of dollars to build. Also, after a month without any real options, passengers and drivers alike are being presented with a bevy of rideshare apps seeking to fill the void. It’s all quite exciting.

We went to find out for ourselves EXACTLY what is going on with rideshare in Austin, Texas.

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by Christian Perea on May 9, 2016 70 Comments

Why Uber And Lyft Are Leaving Austin

Harry here. Big news broke over the weekend that Uber and Lyft are leaving Austin, Texas. Today, RSG senior contributor Christian Perea breaks down exactly what went wrong and why Uber and Lyft are such sore losers when it comes to dealing with the government.

Over the weekend, 56% of Austin citizens rejected a proposition put forward by Uber and Lyft to overturn local TNC un-friendly regulations. Proposition 1 would have repealed a city ordinance enacted by the Austin City Council in December to require mandatory fingerprint-based background checks of all TNC drivers. The December ordinance also required the display of trade dress on vehicles, prohibited stopping in traffic lanes to pickup or drop-off passengers, and the sharing of some data with the city.

In the months leading up to the vote, Lyft and Uber formed a Political Action Committee called “Ridesharing Works for Austin” and poured a little over $9 million into it so they could carpet bomb the airwaves with messages to support their measure and send the city legislature packing with their tails between their legs. In contrast, the PAC against Proposition 1 only managed to raise $100,000. It didn’t matter though, because Uber and Lyft lost anyways.

Credit: Austin Monitor

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by Harry Campbell on April 29, 2016 10 Comments

My Experience Testifying For Driver’s Rights In Sacramento

Last week I traveled up to Sacramento to testify in favor of AB 1727 – a bill in California that would give independent contractors the right to collectively bargain. It was introduced by California State Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, a Democrat representing the 80th Assembly District (South San Diego).

Although there’s been some media coverage for this bill, I hadn’t even heard of it until a staff member from Ms. Gonzalez’s office reached out to me. In short, the bill would allow for independent contractors, that operate through a mobile platform, to organize and collectively bargain with their employer. The bill would cover a lot of different industries but in my estimation, Uber drivers would be the largest group of workers affected.

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