Buying the nation?s largest bike-share operator a big bet on becoming the ?Amazon of transportation? ?The idea was to have an important impact on our world, and how our cities were designed,? John Zimmer, co-founder and president of Lyft, told NPR during an interview examining the beginnings of the company. Initially a carpool service focused on the university market that went by the name of Zimride, Lyft emerged, like many such companies, in a cloud of optimism. Zimmer also spoke of a college class at Cornell about business and environmental impact that made an oversized impression.
It?s important to keep this in mind when evaluating Lyft?s big move into the bike-sharing market. Yesterday, the ridehailing giant purchased Motivate, which operates the nation?s largest bike-sharing fleets, including Citi Bike in New York City and Divvy in Chicago, for a rumored $250 million. While Lyft positions itself as the friendlier, more community-minded ride-hailing company?easy to do with Uber?s recent string of mistakes?the reality, especially for the drivers, is that both companies are fairly similar. But this week?s decision to branch out to bike share in a big way offers Lyft the opportunity to become a different type of transportation company, maybe even one that could start to realize Zimmer?s early ambitions.
This purchase shows that, as transportation and mobility technology continues to evolve, Lyft?s competition isn?t just Uber. As bike share booms?riders took 35 m...