Ride-sharing companies are eager to present themselves as the solution to transportation problems, not the cause of them. With this concept, Lyft seems to be demonstrating that it’s thinking about the issues surrounding its growth, unlike its less scrupulous competitors, and supporting policies that theoretically result in fewer cars on the road while serving more people (assuming that carpooling, buses, biking, and walking are more enticing than a private car).
“We’re really focused on how we can reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips,” Debs Schrimmer, a transportation policy manager at Lyft, says. “We want cities to reward this behavior. It shouldn’t be just about building lanes for autonomous vehicles or buses, but also paying equal attention to amenities that support cycling and walking. Fundamentally we need to redesign streets around people, not cars.”