Taxis Don’t Have a Prayer

Taxis Don’t Have a Prayer
by Roger C. Lanctot on 05-15-2022 at 6:00 am

Taxis Dont Have a Prayer

Ever since the emergence of Uber and DiDi and Gett and Yandex and all the rest of the app-based ride hailing operators I have been worried about taxis. I had a sneaking suspicion that the ride hail operators were exploiting a loophole that put taxis at a disadvantage creating a mortal threat.

My suspicions were borne out by taxi driver… Read More


Uber v Alto Ride Hail Streetfight

Uber v Alto Ride Hail Streetfight
by Roger C. Lanctot on 01-17-2021 at 10:00 am

Uber v. Alto Ride Hail Streetfight

Uber, Lyft, Postmates, Instacart and Doordash were successful in their nearly $200M effort to pass California’s Proposition 22 in November – to allow gig operators to avoid treating their drivers as full-time employees with all of the associated employee benefits and legal protections. In the midst of a devastating pandemic… Read More


Cars and COVID-19 Uncertainty

Cars and COVID-19 Uncertainty
by Roger C. Lanctot on 07-26-2020 at 6:00 am

Cars and COVID 19 Uncertainty

A funny thing happens when you let car makers make cars and car dealers sell cars – people start buying cars. With the U.S. economy at least partially re-opening nationwide car buyers have returned to the market and, finding a limited supply of new cars and disappointing incentives, have turned, in part, to used cars. This … Read More


Shut Uber Down Now

Shut Uber Down Now
by Roger C. Lanctot on 03-29-2020 at 12:00 pm

Shut Uber Down Now

By now it is pretty clear that everywhere outside of China and South Korea human beings are doing a lousy job of “social distancing,” locking down, and sheltering in place. This is unfortunate because experts agree that only a complete lockdown will stop COVID-19 from infecting millions, continuing to kill thousands,

Read More

Don’t Blame Trump for Auto Downturn

Don’t Blame Trump for Auto Downturn
by Roger C. Lanctot on 01-17-2020 at 10:00 am

Dont Blame Trump for Auto Downturn

There is a temptation to blame U.S. President Donald J. Trump for everything that is right or for everything that is wrong in the world today. Either that or blame Brexit. It’s just possible that Uber, instead, ought to be considered the target of shame for everything from traffic fatalities to global warming.

The automotive… Read More


Uber’s Sandcastle

Uber’s Sandcastle
by Roger C. Lanctot on 05-13-2019 at 7:00 am

As Uber’s initial public offering arrives this is a good moment to consider what kind of employment model for the future we all, as employees and employers, would prefer to adopt: Amazon or Uber?

One of my sons has interviewed with Amazon. The other has his Amazon moment today. My across-the-street neighbor works for Amazon Web Services.… Read More


Which Way is Up for Lyft, Uber?

Which Way is Up for Lyft, Uber?
by Roger C. Lanctot on 04-07-2019 at 7:00 am

Lyft’s initial public offering was expected to be the biggest tech offering in two years. A public offering is very much like an elevator and everyone getting on the elevator wants to go up. It’s worth noting as the doors open on the Lyft IPO elevator, General Motors is likely to be getting off – and they are not alone.… Read More


Lyft Uber and Soylent Green

Lyft Uber and Soylent Green
by Roger C. Lanctot on 03-31-2019 at 10:00 am

23223 lyft uber soylent green

It wasn’t enough that Lyft and Uber introduced the world to the concept of taxi and limousine drivers committing suicide, we now have Lyft and Uber drivers committing suicide. In other words, it’s not enough that the business models of these companies are suicidal, they are actually visiting suicide upon their non-employees.… Read More


Lyft & Auto Industry Annihilation

Lyft & Auto Industry Annihilation
by Roger C. Lanctot on 03-31-2019 at 5:00 am

The good news is that Lyft’s initial public offering is over-subscribed, according to published reports. That also happens to be the bad news.

Like its disruptive corporate kin – Waymo, Uber, and Tesla Motors – Lyft is out to creatively destroy the automotive industry. In the process, the company is set on a course for its own annihilation… Read More


Car Sharing Prophets and Losses

Car Sharing Prophets and Losses
by Roger C. Lanctot on 02-15-2019 at 12:00 pm

Industry analysts are fond of painting terrifying pictures of catastrophic market changes resulting from disruptive technologies or business models. Nowhere is this more evident, of late, than in the automotive industry where everything from artificial intelligence to automated driving is expected to upend current thinking… Read More