Lyft will give data to S.F. officials
Lyft and San Francisco have agreed on a way to share data about the ride-hailing service’s operations in the city. That agreement could put more pressure on Uber, which is fighting a subpoena from the San Francisco city attorney seeking equivalent information.
The city wants to learn details, such as how many Uber and Lyft drivers roam the streets, to help ensure that the companies follow laws on access, discrimination, safety and pay, and to assess their impact on congestion, pollution and parking. Both companies share such information with their regulator, the California Public Utilities Commission, but have persuaded the PUC to keep it sealed as trade secrets.
City Attorney Dennis Herrera subpoenaed Lyft and Uber in June seeking four years of records. Both fought back in court. Lyft eventually acquiesced but had wanted no one but lawyers in the city attorney’s office to see the data. Wednesday’s agreement allows city experts in traffic safety and law enforcement to view the records as well.
“This is a reasonable agreement that preserves Lyft’s trade secrets while advancing our investigation into whether these companies violated the rights of ordinary San Franciscans,” Herrera said in a statement. “I want to commend Lyft for being sensible during this process and ultimately doing the right thing.”
Lyft said that it’s pleased with the agreement.
“It’s always our desire to work with cities in which we operate and, after receiving sufficient assurances from the City Attorney that the data will be kept confidential and secure, we have reached a resolution with the City Attorney permitting limited sharing of the data within city government only,” Lyft said. “We look forward to continuing to work with the city to protect sensitive data while also increasing transportation choice for all.”
Uber implied in a statement that it is cooperating with the city.
“We share all required data with our regulators in California to ensure compliance with the law,” it said. “We will continue working with the City of San Francisco on a pilot project to share Uber trip data.”
But Herrera portrayed Uber differently. “For a company that is supposedly changing its culture, thumbing your nose at the law is a funny way of showing that you’re now a good corporate citizen. Uber has fought us at every turn, but the law is on our side. Uber should follow Lyft’s lead — and the law.”
“Lyft’s compliance shows that Uber’s arguments here are baseless,” Herrera said. “It’s time for Uber’s obstruction to end.”