Lyft. Stories Not Being Told.
I share Bryan Goldberg’s sentiment that ride sharing is great. It puts power in the hands of the consumer against an abusive taxi union that lacks accountability and proper incentives, resulting in a horrible service that exemplifies the dangers of unions.
But there is another side of the story that’s not being told and flies in the face of George Packer’s recent curmudgeon piece (I’ll paraphrase because it’s long, rambling and frustrating - “Tech people think they’re solving real world problems, but they’re not. Instead they’re building services that help affluent 20-somethings, like Lyft”). As much as the article sucks, there is some truth to its fundamental claim, but BIG MISTAKE using Lyft as your example, George. Lyft is changing lives.
I always get to know my Lyft drivers, finding out where they’re from and why they started driving for Lyft, and it’s amazing to hear the different parts Lyft plays in their lives. Here are a highlight few (with fake names).
Maria (my first ever Lyft): a Brazilian au-pair, in the states alone, drives in the evenings to make extra money and practice her english.
Eric: formerly a deli clerk making $200/week and with Lyft he’s making $200/day! He’s saving the money to buy a house.
Julie: drives Lyft part time to pay bills while she pursues a career as an artist and photographer.
Jerry: a long time salesman recently retired, felt isolated. Lyft lets him interact with people and be a part of the community again.
Emily: a recent college grad with a fulltime job, uses the extra money from Lyft to pay off her student loans.
Mike: had a girlfriend that wanted to go shopping. He dropped her off and picked up passengers to offset the expense and avoid the pangs of shopping :).
Allison: formerly a cab driver switched to ride sharing and used the money to buy another car and employed another driver to drive it. She had a fleet!
So George, Snapchat may not be changing lives, but Lyft is and has done more for these 7 people than your elitist magazine ever will.
