Skift Take
Ride-sharing is becoming an attractive employment and transportation alternative as long as there is some regulation, and the ride-sharing companies don't gouge riders. On the other hand, they won't succeed if they become to pricey.
By day, Jimmy Lucia is an actor. By night, he roams the streets of Los Angeles as BatLyft.
Cruising in his blue 2013 Kia Rio hatchback, Batman-masked Lucia picks up strangers and takes them wherever they want to go. On a Friday or Saturday night, Lucia will transport as many as 60 people.
But while Lucia's a nice guy, he doesn't give them a lift for free. He is one of hundreds of actors, musicians and filmmakers who are making extra cash with their cars by hooking up as drivers with ride-sharing firm Lyft.
"Everybody has a survival job, and some people, like me, are lucky to have a 'thrival' job -- I can thrive in this job while I pursue my dreams," Lucia said.
The ride-sharing service is only a year old but already has attracted thousands of customers a week who get around the city in rides by Lyft drivers -- usually at a lower price than they would pay for a taxicab. Lyft uses smartphone apps to connect ride-needy users with car-ready drivers.
Lyft and rivals Sidecar and Uber Technologies Inc., which operates the Uber and uberX services, are now in a handful of major cities. The mini-economy they have created is disrupting the established business model of taxicab drivers, who want local officials to crack down on the burgeoning operations.
About 300 cabbies drove in circles around Los Angeles City Hall for about 15 minutes Tuesday morning honking in protest over what they called "high-tech bandit cabs."
Lyft, Sidecar and Uber ignored an order Monday from the city's Transportation Department to cease operating because they were violating city ordinances by not having permits or licenses. The firms said they had agreements to operate from the California Public Utilities Commission.
William Rouse, general manager of L.A. Yellow Cab, said he's outrage
