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The next development in ride hailing services could be subscriptions, as Lyft recently emailed a number of riders invites to its “All Access” program. While the specific plans offered to each person varied, the idea is that by paying a weekly or monthly rate they could pre-buy a number of rides. For people using the service as a substitute for car ownership it could be appealing at the right price, but there’s the rub.
Variety writer Janko Roettgers received an offer of $199 for up to 30 free rides a month (as long as each ride costs less than $15 — if it goes above that he’d be charged the additional cost), while another writer saw a $300 offer for the same package. We also received an invite, promising up to 7 rides per week (as long as they’re worth less than $15) for $49.
Apparently these tests have been going on for a few months, and CNET reports that CEO Logan Green said on a call that “The ideal scenario is moving to a subscription model.” There’s no word on when this may roll out more widely, or at what price.