1 in 6 Uber, Lyft Vehicles Have Current Safety Recall, Study Finds

Consumer Reports could not determine if any customers have been injured due to safety defects. Photo via Lyft. A recent study by Consumer Reports found that one in six vehicles on the Uber and Lyft platforms have an open recall for an unaddressed safety issue. Consumer Reports based its findings on data collected from 94,000… Continue reading 1 in 6 Uber, Lyft Vehicles Have Current Safety Recall, Study Finds

Car rental rates will fall by 2.5% in Spain over the next 12 months

Posted 05/22/2019 1:56:43 PM MADRID, May 22 (EUROPA PRESS) – Car rental rates could fall by 2.5% in Spain due to strong market competition and excess capacity, according to a study by American Express Global Business Travel (GBT). At an international level, the data is more positive. The study predicts that tariffs will increase slightly… Continue reading Car rental rates will fall by 2.5% in Spain over the next 12 months

A sixth of ridesharing cars have unfixed safety recalls

Sponsored Links REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson It’s not just ridesharing drivers that merit some safety concerns — the car might be a risk as well. Consumer Reports has conducted a study indicating that 16.2 percent of the nearly 94,000 ride hailing cars it identified in New York City and King County (including Uber, Lyft and smaller outfits… Continue reading A sixth of ridesharing cars have unfixed safety recalls

Continuing Our Investment in Safety

Safety is fundamental to Lyft, which is why we are continuously working on new features, policies, and programs to protect our riders and drivers. This includes professionally-administered criminal background and driving record checks for all driver-applicants that are re-run annually, in-app photos of the driver and vehicle, real-time ride tracking, digital receipts, two-way rating systems,… Continue reading Continuing Our Investment in Safety

Lyft adds more safety features including in-app emergency assistance, reminders to check the plate

Earlier this spring, both Uber and Lyft introduced new safety features and policies following the death of a university student who was kidnapped and murdered after getting into a vehicle she believed to be her Uber ride. Today, Lyft is announcing an expanded set of safety features and programs, including those that help riders find… Continue reading Lyft adds more safety features including in-app emergency assistance, reminders to check the plate

GM’s car-sharing service Maven to exit eight cities

GM is scaling back its Maven car-sharing company and will stop service in nearly half of the 17 North American cities in which it operates. A spokesperson who confirmed Maven was shutting down in some cities, without identifying the locations or number that will remain, said the company plans to focus on markets that have… Continue reading GM’s car-sharing service Maven to exit eight cities

GM’s car-sharing service is pulling out of eight cities, including Chicago and NYC

Maven, the car-sharing service owned by General Motors, is ending operations in several major North American cities. According to The Wall Street Journal, the mobility brand will wind down service in eight of the 17 cities in which it operates, including Boston, Chicago, and New York City. Maven will continue to operate in Detroit, Los… Continue reading GM’s car-sharing service is pulling out of eight cities, including Chicago and NYC

Usain Bolt launches two-seater electric vehicle which starts at $9,999

VIDEO4:1504:15Cities need help with congestion: Usain Bolt on electric scooter firmStreet Signs EuropeUsain Bolt's Mobility company has launched a two-seater, all-electric and zero-emission vehicle.
Dubbed the Bolt Nano, it was unveiled at the VivaTech conference in Paris Thursday. Whilst detailed information about the vehicle has yet to be revealed, prices start at $9,999, with deliveries starting in 2020.
Those interested in the Bolt Nano can put down a refundable deposit of $999 to reserve a vehicle, which has a swappable battery and seats one passenger in the front and one in the back. The vehicles are small enough for four to fit into one parking space.
The launch of the Bolt Nano comes in the same week that the firm announced it was rolling out its e-scooter offering in Paris. Users of the scooter service locate their vehicles via an app, paying for their ride through an account with the company. In the U.S., it costs $1 to unlock a vehicle and then 15 cents per minute.
Speaking to CNBC's Karen Tso Thursday, Bolt said that, having retired from sport, he was entering a new chapter of his life. “Through traveling, through my times as a track athlete, I've learned that the cities around the world need help with congestion,” he said.
Bolt, one of the most successful and iconic athletes of all time, is a co-founder of the business. The firm says its aim is to cut congestion and people's reliance on “personal vehicles” by partnering with city governments to “weave transportation alternatives into the fabric of urban environments.”
Sarah Haynes is also co-founder of the firm. She told CNBC that there was a “big, big appetite for finding solutions for transportation issues.”
“The cities that we have today are the same ones that have been there for centuries, and they're not made for this many cars,” she explained, going on to add that the firm was “looking at a fleet of transportation solutions that are electric. Our designs with our scooters are all customized so we can recycle every single part, including the batteries.”
The way people move around urban areas is changing, with ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft now offered in major cities across the world. Well established cycle-share schemes are also available in capitals such as London and Paris.
In the electric scooter market, Usain Bolt's venture is one of many looking to tap in to the shared transport sector. Firms such as Bird, Lime, and Bolt – formerly known as Taxify – also offer users a platform that allows them to locate and hire electric scooters using their smartphone.
Whether electric scooters take off and become a popular mode of transport for urban commuters remains to be seen. Regulatory hurdles pose a significant challenge to their mass adoption.
In the U.K., for example, e-scooters are considered to be “powered transporters.” This means that, currently, they are defined as being “motor vehicles” and it is illegal to use them on a public road without complying with several requirements, which in practice is difficult. Use of powered transporters on U.K. pavements and cycle lanes is also prohibited.
Change is afoot, however. In March 2019, the government announced what it described as “the biggest review into transport in a generation.” The review will look at regulations surrounding vehicles such as e-scooters and e-cargo bike trailers and will explore modernizing old laws that date back to the 1800s.

What Uber and Lyft’s investment bankers got right

Startup CEOs heading to the public markets have a love/hate relationship with their investment bankers. On one hand, they are helpful in introducing a company to a wide range of asset managers who will hopefully hold their company’s stock for the long term, reducing price volatility and by extension, employee churn. On the other hand,… Continue reading What Uber and Lyft’s investment bankers got right

The City of Tomorrow Approaches a Tricky Intersection: The Corner of Technology and Quality of Life

The City of Tomorrow Approaches a Tricky Intersection: The Corner of Technology and Quality of Life By Marcy Klevorn, President, Ford Motor Company Ford Motor CompanyBlockedUnblockFollowFollowing May 14 Ford convenes its second City of Tomorrow Symposium on May 23 at The Container Yard in downtown Los Angeles. The past few decades of technology disruption have improved the lives… Continue reading The City of Tomorrow Approaches a Tricky Intersection: The Corner of Technology and Quality of Life