Raise your hand if you have heard of Uber. If your hand was raised then, sorry, but you just raised your hand because a newspaper told you to. Seriously though, what is up with these ride sharing apps and why is there such a fuss about it? Well, think about it for a moment. Just to eliminate any possibility of the next few sentences offending anyone, I will use evasive phrases that may or may not confuse you.
Picture this: you travel to the New York City from the other side of the world in order to start a new life of hard work and adventure. A very popular job among immigrants to this side of the country, and non-immigrants as well, is driving a cab. As a profession, it is not the worst option for those wanting to start new and avoid the insane amount of background checks and education and what not. Things are going great for you because you begin to know the city very well and generate a steady income. Then a mysterious, new transportation service arrives and talk of the taxi industry collapsing begins to circulate. It is a very scary situation indeed and you suddenly fear for your well-being. Sure, you can get on board with these services and drive for them, instead of the traditional taxi business. But now comes a question of which one to “work” for. There are multiple services that are almost exactly the same, and it becomes hard to predict which ones will stay afloat and succeed. In one instant, that safe driver job at a cab company that New Yorkers have trusted for decades suddenly seems obsolete and vulnerable to collapse. Nothing seems guaranteed and stable anymore, does it?
For those that do not know, services like Uber and Lyft provide easy and very safe options for transportation. With a few taps on a smartphone, anyone can set a location for pickup and drop off, as well as view some background information and reviews of the driver.
Some of you may think that I do not know what I am talking about, and that I do not know the opinions of these cab drivers. Some may even believe that the landmark taxi as a mode of transportation is timeless and is not going anywhere anytime soon. I am here to inform you that you are wrong, and I am sorry.
On the bright side, you get to read on about what is right.
I personally have family with plenty of experience in the transportation industry in New York City. All of them agree that this revolution is hurting their business. Fortunately, some of them have found opportunities with Uber in particular. All is well that ends well.
Lyft and Uber’s main selling points are related to their simplicity and ease of use. As stated before, all it takes to utilize these services is a few taps on a phone and some patience. One of the most esteemed cab companies in New York, McGuinness Management, which opened 30 years ago, has reported a 40% loss in revenue in the last couple years with a serious lack in growth.
Ride sharing companies have been experiencing clashes with New York legislation. For example, New York City mayor Bill de Blasio proposed a bill to limit the consistent growth of for-hire vehicle companies in order to control New York City’s transportation industry. Too bad Uber had better points to discuss in response to the bill. Sorry de Blasio, software engineers for the win.
