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Some other rideshare app(s) will come in and fill in the void. I had zero issues getting around Austin when Uber/Lyft pulled out of that market.

ninju 3y ago
What are some alternatives for US-based passengers? In my experience Uber and Lyft pretty much have the mindshare of rideshare options
- wilsjacob 3y ago
  There are more than folks realize, Alto, Kaptyn, and Revel to name a few. Lots of “second gen” companies starting with a different approach. Disclosure: I work at Alto.
  - JumpCrisscross 3y ago
    Revel isn’t in Minneapolis and has been shitting the bed in terms of service in New York. Kaptyn appears to be only in Las Vegas. Hadn’t heard of Alto; looks neat. But the website seems to ambitiously evade disclosing their area of operation. That said, it does look like ride-sharing in Minneapolis is headed for a members-only model [1]. [1] https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/03/14/uber-lyft-alternatives-minneapolis-legislation https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/03/14/uber-lyft...
mrweasel 3y ago
Yes "ride share", where you share the car with a driver that only happens to go the same way as you because you asked them to. These are straight up taxi companies, not ride sharing. Uber, and Lyft, keeps sticking to "ride sharing" sales pitch, while running money losing taxi services. If they truly where ride sharing services, then they wouldn't be having these legal issues.
sa-code 3y ago
Can I ask why you call them ride shares and not taxis?
- gwill 3y ago
  in the US it's normal to refer to uber/lyft as ride share apps. with ride share apps, the driver supplies their own, personal, vehicle. taxi services in the US have yet to roll out any type of for hailing rides afaik and have a fleet of vehicles with their own livery.
  - tivert 3y ago
    > taxi services in the US have yet to roll out any type of [app] for hailing rides afaik and have a fleet of vehicles with their own livery. Don't NYC taxis have one? I vaguely recall there being something when I visited several years ago. [note, I had to guess to fill in the blank for your comment, since it seemed like you dropped a critical word].
  - beej71 3y ago
    One of my local taxi companies (Central Oregon) has an uber-like app for their cabs. So they are changing.
  - mrweasel 3y ago
    What do you call an actual ride sharing service then?
  - drivingmenuts 3y ago
    In Austin, Yellow Cab became Z-Trip, with more of a ride hailing model than the old taxi model. They are cheaper than Uber or Lyft and considerably more reliable. Uber/Lyft will cancel a pick-up (sometimes, without telling you) when the pick-up is less profitable or would cause the driver to leave an area with more ride pickups. Z-Trip has never done that, that I know of. U/L also tend to have more drivers who are less proficient with English, which causes communication issues. Lastly, if you have a medical condition and it's not an urgent trip, Z-Trip can usually handle it. I have had Uber and Lyft drivers cancel on me, once while I was sitting in the car. But the main difference is on price - Z-Trip does not do the annoying surge pricing like the others do.

ninju 3y ago

What are some alternatives for US-based passengers? In my experience Uber and Lyft pretty much have the mindshare of rideshare options

wilsjacob 3y ago
There are more than folks realize, Alto, Kaptyn, and Revel to name a few. Lots of “second gen” companies starting with a different approach. Disclosure: I work at Alto.
- JumpCrisscross 3y ago
  Revel isn’t in Minneapolis and has been shitting the bed in terms of service in New York. Kaptyn appears to be only in Las Vegas. Hadn’t heard of Alto; looks neat. But the website seems to ambitiously evade disclosing their area of operation. That said, it does look like ride-sharing in Minneapolis is headed for a members-only model [1]. [1] https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/03/14/uber-lyft-alternatives-minneapolis-legislation https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/03/14/uber-lyft...

mrweasel 3y ago

Yes "ride share", where you share the car with a driver that only happens to go the same way as you because you asked them to. These are straight up taxi companies, not ride sharing. Uber, and Lyft, keeps sticking to "ride sharing" sales pitch, while running money losing taxi services. If they truly where ride sharing services, then they wouldn't be having these legal issues.

sa-code 3y ago

Can I ask why you call them ride shares and not taxis?

gwill 3y ago
in the US it's normal to refer to uber/lyft as ride share apps. with ride share apps, the driver supplies their own, personal, vehicle. taxi services in the US have yet to roll out any type of for hailing rides afaik and have a fleet of vehicles with their own livery.
- tivert 3y ago
  > taxi services in the US have yet to roll out any type of [app] for hailing rides afaik and have a fleet of vehicles with their own livery. Don't NYC taxis have one? I vaguely recall there being something when I visited several years ago. [note, I had to guess to fill in the blank for your comment, since it seemed like you dropped a critical word].
- beej71 3y ago
  One of my local taxi companies (Central Oregon) has an uber-like app for their cabs. So they are changing.
- mrweasel 3y ago
  What do you call an actual ride sharing service then?
- drivingmenuts 3y ago
  In Austin, Yellow Cab became Z-Trip, with more of a ride hailing model than the old taxi model. They are cheaper than Uber or Lyft and considerably more reliable. Uber/Lyft will cancel a pick-up (sometimes, without telling you) when the pick-up is less profitable or would cause the driver to leave an area with more ride pickups. Z-Trip has never done that, that I know of. U/L also tend to have more drivers who are less proficient with English, which causes communication issues. Lastly, if you have a medical condition and it's not an urgent trip, Z-Trip can usually handle it. I have had Uber and Lyft drivers cancel on me, once while I was sitting in the car. But the main difference is on price - Z-Trip does not do the annoying surge pricing like the others do.