I have a friend who recently used one of the burgeoning ride share services to get form her home to the airport. She said that the service was relatively quick, cost efficient, and one that she would never use again because the guy that picked her up was super creepy. That’s just one of the negative stories I’ve recently heard about these companies- the largest of which are Uber and Lyft. Other stories, like the woman who was charged more than $500 for a ride from Westwood to Hollywood (all of 14 miles) due to a storm on the East Coast, makes me wonder if these smartphone-based services are really any good.

Cab companies have for years been heavily regulated and a hack license, in New York City at least, can be extremely hard to get and hence proves to be a very valuable commodity. That equity is what the cab companies are trying to protect in their efforts to stop these unregulated scab-cab services like Uber and Lyft from taking their business. Here in LA, where the city leaders attempt to seem hip, those efforts have fallen on deaf ears, and for the moment at least the ride sharers appear to be flourishing.

Are you part of that wave of shared transportation services? If you are, how’d it go for you- were you satisfied with the service, or were you creeped out and now keep your shades down and your doors locked lest a stalking pink mustache appear in your driveway? What do you think about ride sharing services, are they brah! or blah? 

Image source: BostInno