Lyft Is Launching in Philadelphia on Friday
Photo via Lyft
Ride-hailing service Lyft announced today that it will launch its service in Philadelphia on Friday, January 30th. The company had been advertising for drivers in Philadelphia this month.
Lyft is the chief competitor to Uber. Lyft is not a premium “black car” service — it is more like UberX, where passengers get rides in cars that generally aren’t luxury vehicles. Lyft has rolled out a premium service in some areas. In anticipation of the rollout of Lyft, UberX lowered its prices by 35 percent a few days ago.
The service begins at 6 p.m. Friday. To use it, you’ll need the Lyft app.
Lyft says it conducts extensive background checks on its drivers, refusing to hire anyone who has been convicted of certain crimes in the last seven years. It also won’t hire drivers with multiple moving violations, and has a “zero tolerance” drug and alcohol policy.
The service was once best known for the giant pink mustaches on the front of its vehicles, as well as encouraging riders to sit in the front seat and fist bump drivers. These segments of the service have largely been phased out, however, with many Lyft cars now sporting a small mustache on the dashboard.
Though it is allowed to operate in the rest of the state, Lyft is not licensed to operate in Philadelphia. The PPA has said any Lyft driver found to be operating in Philly will face a $1,000 fine, just like UberX.
