Even if you don’t listen to the news much, you’ve probably heard at least one story of Uber drivers behaving badly, whether it’s yelling at passengers or outright assaulting them. Uber is a sexy topic in the news, which means these types of stories (especially if they’re recorded by passengers) will get headlines, but it does bring up an important question of who’s out there driving. Today, I’m speaking with Dave Sutton, a spokesperson for Who’s Driving You, to discuss the risks involved with Uber and Lyft’s rideshare business model.
If you’d like to read a transcript of this podcast, please click here.
Intro
- There are many stories out there of drivers behaving badly, and some organizations have popped up to combat or at least make people aware of the risks of rideshare driving
- Today I’m speaking with Dave Sutton, a spokesperson for Who’s Driving You. Who’s Driving You is an initiative by the TLPA, the Taxi Limousine and Paratransit Association – obviously they’re not fans of Uber/Lyft
- But I wanted to speak with him to learn more about the organization, the reason behind starting it, and how we can fix things moving forward
- Ridesharing isn’t going away, and neither are taxis. So how can they co-exist?
- Mystro helps automate your Uber and Lyft driving, like a virtual assistant for rideshare drivers. It’s a safer way to manage rideshare driving, keeping your eyes on the road and hands on the wheel
Interview with Dave Sutton
- Spokesperson for Who’s Driving You, a public safety campaign on behalf of the Taxicab, Limousine and Paratransit Association. Who’s Driving You highlights the risks involved in Uber and Lyft’s ridesharing business model.
- Campaign began in 2013, about when Uber/Lyft began getting bigger
- It was easy to call it “your friend with a car” at first until ridesharing got bigger and people started getting hurt/killed by rideshare drivers.
- Lack of insurance was a big concern too
Who’s Driving You? Initiative
- Got started when TLPA members realized rideshare companies weren’t adhering to core elements of driving, like insurance, lack of police-conducted background checks
- Every time Uber was in the news for doing something bad, too, we were a counter-balance to that
- Uber/Lyft are beginning to overtake taxis (in some parts of the country) in terms of rides given, but ridesharing companies are still subsidizing a lot of the cost of the rides – which is why rides are so cheap for passengers
- The vetting process rideshare drivers go through is not as rigorous as the one taxi drivers go through
Should Rideshare Be Regulated Like Taxis?
- In terms of fingerprinting and background checks, these steps would make it safer for passengers, although it could reduce the overall number of drivers
- Taxis could also provide a more Uber-like experience to passengers
- Things like requiring insurance and more stringent criteria to drive aren’t new – taxis have them and they could be implemented in the rideshare space
How Can the Taxi Industry Be Innovative like Rideshare?
- Some of the issue is the medallion system, although it doesn’t exist everywhere: supply and demand
- No one app that can hail a taxi for passengers, like Uber and Lyft
- Not a lot of options for part-time drivers and no real incentive strategies to drive more, farther, etc.
TLPA Association Moving Forward
- The “Who’s Driving You” campaign is about safety, and the TLPA association is moving into the future with new initiatives
- Taxis have a lot of inherent advantages: street hail, ease of use at airports, familiarity
- In the future, cities need more access to data: data from taxi companies, public transportation and rideshare companies
- To reduce congestion and help city planners, this data should be public, especially if the goal is to reduce congestion, pollution, traffic, etc.
Outro
- Thank you to Dave Sutton for coming into the lion’s den to talk to us! 🙂
- Dave provided us some good insight into what the ‘Who’s Driving You?’ campaign is about and how the TLPA wants to be involved in the rideshare discussion moving forward
- Don’t forget to check out Mystro, which will help you better manage your Uber/Lyft requests, freeing you up to concentrate on what’s important: driving and giving your passengers a great experience!
- Follow me on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube and you can always contact me if you have questions – I like to hear from you all!
Show Notes
- Who’s Driving You? campaign
- Mystro
- Subscribe to iTunes and never miss an episode!
- Connect with me on Twitter
If you’d like to read a transcript of this podcast, please click here.
-Harry @ RSG
