Lyft now supports personal car ownership. This is quite a surprise since the ride-hailing company aimed to end owning private vehicles.
However, it seems like Lyft is now changing its stance regarding this topic.
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Recently, Lyft said it would bring autonomous vehicles to revolutionize the transportation industry.
Lyft President John Zimmer even claimed that most of the ride-hailing company's services would be replaced by robotaxis.
Now, it seems like Zimmer's prediction is incorrect as Lyft changes its belief regarding privately owned cars.
Lyft Now Supports Car Ownership
According to The Wired's latest report, Lyft's value has decreased by around 80% since it went public in 2019.
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A taxi drives by a phone displaying the Uber app in Barcelona on March 13, 2018. - Uber said it was back in Barcelona with 120 professional drivers after it was forced out three years ago over the suspension of its service that enables unregulated drivers to ferry passengers for money using their own cars. (Photo by PAU BARRENA / AFP)
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Because of this, the company was forced to terminate almost 13% of its workforce. Since the business Lyft is in a not-so-good situation, the ride-hailing service provider wants to take advantage of car ownership.
The mobility service company wants to get into this business by supporting owners in maintaining their vehicles.
This is quite reasonable, especially since around 75% of Lyft's consumers already have their own cars.
"We're meeting our riders and customers where they are," said the company's head of fleet, Jody Kelman.
Zimmer's Prediction Far from Reality
CNBC reported that Zimmer predicted in 2016 that self-driving vehicles would replace privately owned cars in the next five years.
But, his estimate seems to be far from reality. He admitted that he had already got this topic wrong once.
Although this is the case, Zimmer still believes in the potential of autonomous vehicles to replace private cars.
"I really think in the next two to three years that kind of actual no driver, a driverless vehicle will be something you can order pretty easily on the Lyft platform," said the Lyft official.
In other stories, 60 Lyft employees were terminated as part of the company's consolidation of global efforts.
While Lyft is facing revenue losses, Uber's Tesla rental program became a success based on the company's recent performance report.
For more news updates about Lyft and other ride-hailing service companies, keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.
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Written by Griffin Davis
