Ride-sharing firm makes ‘Lyft’ off in Canada
Toronto to be U.S. firm’s first global location
The ride- hailing company Lyft, a major U. S. rival to Uber, i s moving to gain ground internationally.
Lyft announced Monday that it planned to begin operating in Toronto, its first international location, in time for the holiday season.
The company, which has benefited from several scandals at Uber, is trying to raise the stakes in its rivalry with its much larger competitor.
Lyft has begun exploring an initial public offering in 2018 and raised US$1 billion in financing last month, getting support from Alphabet’s venture investment arm, CapitalG, along the way.
Lyft has also been jockeying for space in the selfdriving car sector, agreeing in September to a partner- ship with Ford Motor Co. to develop autonomous-vehicle designs and technology, and opening a research facility in Palo Alto, California.
The company’s expansion into Canada highlights its ambitions to challenge Uber farther afield.
“We have had our sights set on international expansion for months, and the Canadian market is an obvious fit for Lyft’s culture, values and the service that we provide,” Logan Green, the company’s chief executive, said in a statement.
Lyft said it would start its service in Toronto next month, he added. John Zimmer, company president and co- f ounder, said he expects Toronto to become one of Lyft’s five largest markets.
In an effort to entice drivers, Lyft is offering a 25 per cent bonus for the first 3,000 drivers who are approved and who complete 20 rides a week during the company’s first three months of operation in Toronto.
Lyft made its announce- ment just hours after Uber completed a deal to sell a stake to the Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, a move that paves the way for sweeping governance changes at the ride- hailing behemoth, as well as for that company’s own initial public offering.
Uber has been trying to repair its image, with Dara Khosrowshahi, the new chief executive, pushing a softer tone and a set of cultural values that i ncludes the maxim, “We do the right thing. Period.”
Uber, which began operating in Toronto five years ago, has faced resistance in Canada. Taxi drivers have protested against the company for not adhering to the same rules as the taxi industry. Toronto city officials at one point sought to ban Uber, but Ontario’s Superior Court refused that request in 2015.
The company suffered a setback last week in London, when a British employment tribunal rejected its argument that the company’s drivers were self-employed.
The ruling, upholding an earlier court judgment, threatens Uber’s hiring model in Britain.
That decision came after London’s transport regulator in September revoked Uber’s licence to operate in the British capital, its biggest market outside of the U. S., saying the company was not “fit and proper” to operate there. Uber is appealing the ruling and can continue to operate in London until the appeals process is completed.
Lyft, by contrast, has so far limited its expansion to the U. S. The company has, however, had several meetings with London transport officials, according to documents published by Transport for London, the city’s transportation authority. Lyft has given presentations about its business model and discussed the London mayor’s transport strategy, raising the prospect that it could seek to expand there.
The company has tried to project a friendlier image to distinguish itself from Uber.
Zimmer reportedly said the company was focused on “treating people well.”