There have been articles about Lyft and Uber competing for drivers since about 2013:
"It's easy to persuade consumers to use an app to book a ride. But having enough drivers on the road to pick up all those passengers has proven more difficult.
In a race to keep up with ballooning demand from riders in San Francisco, who now expect on-call cars within minutes at all times of day, companies like Uber, Lyft and Sidecar are putting their recruiting tactics in high gear.
Uber, which lets riders hail drivers using personal cars through its lower-cost UberX program, has pulled some "really ballsy" moves to lure drivers away from competitors while increasing their own pool, said a 50-year-old motorist who works for UberX and Lyft." [source]
Tactics include...
- Attractive female passengers on a Lyft ride who turn out to be Uber recruiters trying to get the Lyft driver to switch sides. [2014-01-31, SF Chronicle]
- $500 for Lyft, Sidecar, etc. drivers to do one UberX drive. [2014-05-2, Geekwire]
- For Lyft drivers: $50 gas card just for stopping by the Uber office and a new signing bonus that consists of: "100% of fares through the end of 2013, with no Uber commissions taken out. There’s also a $500 bonus if drivers pick up 20 riders before January 1st, 2014" [2013-12-11, Techcrunch]
- And for the last one you just have to read the article...Lyft and Uber are camping out on opposite sides of the same intersection offering free lunches, swag, and sign-on bonuses to drivers.
Finally, this is all very ironic given the other ways that ridesharing companies treat their drivers...
