Lyft Will Offer '100% Discounts' on Bikes and Scooter Rides
Lyft's already making moves to cement its position in the bike and scooter sharing space. In a blog post, Lyft co-founder John Zimmer wrote about the company's plan to partner with cities to introduce its bike and scooter sharing services to connect commuters with public transit.
Lyft's goal is to have 50% of its rides be "shared" or Uber pool-type rides as well as to encourage users to use a combination of Lyft services and public transit, Zimmer writes:
"The Lyft app will be unique in its emphasis and ability to bridge the first and last-mile gap. Soon you will be able to get real-time transit information, plan a multi-modal trip, and use Lyft Bikes and Scooters to connect to a local transit stop or shared ride pickup location."
Last month, Lyft purchased Motivate, which operates New York City's Citi Bike, Washington DC's Capital Bikeshare and dozens of other bike-sharing operations throughout the US. It's working on integrating those services with its own app will rebrand the company as Lyft Bikes.
To get people to use this new multi-modal trip type, Lyft said in its application permit to operate in San Francisco that it was considering considering “up to 100 [percent] discount on rides that start or end at designated transit stops such as MUNI, BART, or CalTrain.” It's quite possible it will offer similar discounts to connect with other city's public transit systems.
The company says it already has transit partnerships with 25 cities and counties in the US — with the first two integrations coming into the app in Marin Country and Santa Monica, California.
Zimmer added that Lyft will invest heavily in local non-profits to bring more transportation options to low-income and underserved neighborhoods. It hopes to take 1 million cars off the road by 2019, claiming it reduced the number of vehicles by 250,000 in 2017.
This announcement comes only a week after Lyft's mammoth rival Uber invested in Lime, a massive transportation-sharing company that will integrate with Uber — offering users to rent scooters and bikes through the app.
Both of the ride-hailing companies are on the path to become an all-in one transportation service, with the Uber CEO even saying he wants Uber to one-day "run the bus systems for a city."
H/T: The Verge
