Lyft’s CEO spoke to Time about the future of Lyft and rideshare and wrote a letter to shareholders. DoorDash also posted about its commitment to a safe platform.
Plus,are alternative Rideshare options launching in Minneapolis soon? And the reason why you need to diversify your income.
Lyft’s CEO on Layoffs, Leading With Purpose and the Future of Ride-Sharing
Topic Originally Appeared On Time
Summary
When David Risher took over as CEO of Lyft about a year ago, the company was losing market share and struggling with morale.
Its stock price was approaching an all-time low, down nearly 90% from its IPO high of 2019. One of Risher’s first moves was to cut staff by 26%, affecting hundreds of employees.
Risher, a one-time Lyft board member and former Amazon executive, is the first non-founder to lead Lyft.
Still, he’s put his own stamp on the company, cutting prices for riders and launching a guarantee that drivers would earn 70% of rider payments every week after external fees like tolls and insurance.
He also introduced Women+ Connect, a feature that lets women and nonbinary riders choose drivers who are also women or nonbinary,
He’s also not afraid to roll up his sleeves and occasionally drives for Lyft to see what contractors experience.
My Take
It’s been one year since Risher took over as CEO of Lyft. This interview seems to serve as a bit of a check in to see how things are going since he took the reins.
This week, Risher also posted a letter to Lyft’s shareholders.
As drivers for Lyft, have you seen changes over the past year? Share your experiences in the comments! Have you tried Women+ Connect? We’d love to hear how that is going!
Our Commitment to Maintaining a Safe and Trusted Platform
Topic Originally Appeared On DoorDash
Summary
“At DoorDash, we want every consumer, Dasher, and merchant to have a safe experience each time they use our platform.
We deeply value the trust we’ve built within the DoorDash community for more than a decade, and take our commitment to maintain a safe and trusted platform extremely seriously.
To help ensure that Dashers are who they say they are and prevent access by individuals looking to abuse our platform, we’ve built a robust, multi-layered identity verification and safety screening process for anyone who wants to deliver through our platform.
Every prospective Dasher must verify their identity with a current, valid government ID. In addition, they must complete a background check through an accredited background check provider, using their Social Security Number. This includes a review of both criminal history and motor vehicle record (if dashing with a motor vehicle), before anyone can ever access the platform.
As a continuing safety measure, we also rerun background checks for thousands of Dashers every week.
If a Dasher cannot pass a background check or cannot verify their identity at sign up, they are not permitted to dash. Since 2014, more than 25 million background checks have been completed in the United States alone.”
My Take
We’ve talked about safety often on our platform. It’s because we firmly believe that platforms like DoorDash, Uber, etc., should be doing as much as they can to keep their drivers and customers safe.
Every week as I’m scouring the web for news stories, I seem to always come across a new story with a violent end, either for the driver or the customer.
It’s good to know that all Dashers on the platform are required to verify their identity.
This can get tricky, though, because there are some couples and friends who tag-team DoorDashing. One drives while the other drops the food off. If someone doesn’t match, they could be reported and taken off the platform.
Several of the tips we give to Uber drivers can also be transferred to safety tips for DoorDash drivers. Check out the tips here: Safety for Uber Drivers: Tips to Protect Yourself on the Road.
Uber And Lyft Alternatives Say They Will Launch In Minneapolis Soon … Just Not Today
Topic Originally Appeared On Minnesota Reformer
Summary
May 1 was supposed to be a big day in Minneapolis for emerging ride-hail companies. At least nine startups said they would launch in the Twin Cities and claim the market share surrendered by Uber and Lyft over minimum pay rates for drivers set by the Minneapolis City Council.
However, nearly two months after the City Council passed those rates — delaying enactment until May 1 and then July 1 — just two transportation network companies are operational in the city: Uber and Lyft.
Just one potential competitor — MyWeels (with no ‘h’) — became licensed in Minneapolis on Wednesday after paying the city’s annual fee of $37,145 plus $10,615 for a “wheelchair surcharge.”
MyWeels is also the only ride-hail alternative to be licensed in St. Paul after paying its annual fee of $41,115. Three companies — MyWeels, Moov and Twin City Taxi — have applied to operate at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, which has a licensing fee of $500.
My Take
I get it. Uber and Lyft have the majority share of the market. It would be almost instant death for these alternative companies to try to hit the road when the biggest competitors are still in play.
It’s great to see that Minneapolis will have so many options, though. I’ll be curious to know which ones survive and which ones flounder if Uber and Lyft ever do decide to leave the city. I’m sure eventually it’ll narrow down to a couple options.
There’s enough market share for everyone, I’m sure, but there will be ones that don’t work as well as consumers hope for.
If Uber and Lyft leave Minneapolis, even with this many choices, I feel like consumers will be scrambling to figure out what they will do.
Why You Should Diversify Your Income
Topic Originally Appeared On TikTok
My Take
There are so many options for people when it comes to gig work and side hustles. There’s no need to pinhole yourself into one thing like just rideshare driving or just delivery.
The more you mix and match, the more options you have when things slow down on one platform, and the easier it is to transition to another. Keep your options open so you can earn as much as possible when you hit the road.
RSG in the News This Week
Read more trending topics in the news this week:
Must Listen Or Watch RSG Content
Here are this week’s featured podcast episode and YouTube videos:
- RSG254: Curbivore Preview With Jonah Bliss
- Uber And Lyft Minimum Fare Rides Keep Going DOWN – Show Me The Money Club
- Is Uber’s Trip Radar Taking Over Ride Requests? Uber Algorithm CHANGE?
- If You Drive Uber And Lyft Then Let The Dogs In!
- The Rideshare Guy en Español
- Make sure you Subscribe so you don’t miss out on future conversations and interviews!
