The Massachusetts settlement with Uber and Lyft marks a substantial improvement over the companies’ withdrawn ballot measure. But the state and the voters can and should do more to help gig drivers.
Lyft
Posted inBallot Questions
Ballot question fundraising and spending largely hidden from public view
In contrast to state election laws governing candidates for office, which require regular reporting throughout the year on campaign donations and expenditures, ballot question committees operate under relatively lax reporting requirements.
Posted inCourts
Uber, Lyft say they aren’t transportation companies, liken themselves to travel agents
The latest leg in a multi-front worker classification fight kicked off in Suffolk Superior Court on Monday, with the start of Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s lawsuit against ride-share giants Uber and Lyft.
Posted inTransportation
App-based drivers make push for a union
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE EVERYONE IN the State House and surrounding area of downtown Boston heard app-based drivers calls Wednesday afternoon for collective bargaining rights — or at least they […]
Posted inBallot Questions, Courts, Economy
SJC throws out Uber-Lyft ballot question
THE SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT on Tuesday threw out a ballot question that would classify ride-share drivers as independent contractors, putting a sudden end to what was primed to be an […]
Posted inEconomy
For Dems, a ballot question brouhaha
THERE WILL BE no table after all at the Democratic State Convention promoting ride-share companies’ position on a hotly contested November ballot question. A brewing intra-party battle over plans by […]
Posted inEconomy
Rideshare ballot showdown poses ‘unusual’ question
MASSACHUSETTS HAS A long history of putting complicated policy questions that lawmakers have been unable to resolve to a direct vote in statewide elections. This fall looks like it will […]
Posted inEconomy
Healey sues Uber, Lyft for misclassifying drivers
ATTORNEY GENERAL MAURA HEALEY on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against ride-hailing platforms Uber and Lyft accusing them of misclassifying drivers as independent contractors instead of employees. “Uber and Lyft have […]
Posted inEconomy
Limits on independent contracting hurt employers and workers
CARING FOR A tsunami of patients in the midst of a pandemic is hard enough. Unfortunately, laws in Massachusetts and California make the job even harder by preventing hospitals and […]
Posted inTransportation
Massport: New Uber/Lyft drop-offs will speed Logan travel
THE MASSACHUSETTS PORT AUTHORITY staged a dry run on Wednesday to demonstrate how a centralized location for Uber and Lyft pickups and drop-offs will work at Logan International Airport. With […]
Posted inTransportation
Cities eye higher fees on Uber, Lyft rides
HIGHER FEES on Uber and Lyft rides appear to be gaining some momentum around the country as a way of raising money and dealing with congestion, and they are likely […]
Posted inThe Download
Cities eye higher fees on Uber, Lyft rides
Higher fees on Uber and Lyft rides appear to be gaining some momentum around the country as a way of raising money and dealing with congestion, and they are likely […]
Posted inTransportation
For complex traffic problem, Baker offers smorgasbord
LACKING A “SILVER BULLET” to deal with traffic congestion, Gov. Charlie Baker presented a scattershot plan Thursday to tinker with intersections, quickly clear road wrecks, and consider building special new […]
Posted inPolitics
Walsh pitches ride-hailing fees as traffic solution
BOSTON MAYOR MARTY Walsh wants to reduce traffic choking city streets and enhance transit options in the city through a mixture of targeted taxes on ride-hailing services and investments by […]
Posted inPolitics
Baker proposes new ride-hailing regs
Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday proposed a range of new regulations to prevent abuses of the Uber and Lyft ride-hailing platforms and to more precisely monitor how those on-demand travel […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t blame Uber and Lyft for congestion
NOT LONG AGO, many of us who live and work in Boston had to plan our days around times the T would run, hope that a taxi scheduled the night […]
Posted inTransportation
Uber, Lyft too big to ignore
IN MASSACHUSETTS TRANSPORTATION CIRCLES, Uber and Lyft are becoming simply too big to ignore. According to documents Lyft filed in preparation for its initial public stock offering, the company is […]
Posted inThe Download
Uber, Lyft too big to ignore
In Massachusetts transportation circles, Uber and Lyft are becoming simply too big to ignore. According to documents Lyft filed in preparation for its initial public stock offering, the company is […]
Posted inTransportation
Another data-point on the rise of ride-hailing apps
Most transportation analysts are convinced Uber and Lyft are transforming the way people get around in the United States, but there’s been relatively little hard data. New York City for […]
Posted inThe Download
Another data-point on the rise of ride-hailing apps
Most transportation analysts are convinced Uber and Lyft are transforming the way people get around in the United States, but there’s been relatively little hard data. New York City for […]
Posted inThe Download
NYC, Boston view ride-hailing apps differently
New York City and Boston are night and day when it comes to ride-hailing apps such as Uber and Lyft. New York is engaged in a fierce policy debate about […]
Posted inTransportation
Uber, Lyft expanding to bikes, scooters
Uber and Lyft are expanding their vision of ride-sharing to include not just cars but bicycles, electric bicycles, and electric scooters. Uber jumped in first, adding the electric bikeshare company […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Ride-hailing apps rule at Logan
RIDE-HAILING APPS such as Uber and Lyft are now the leading way passengers get to and from Logan International Airport, an indication of how rapidly their popularity is growing. According […]
Posted inThe Download
Uber vs. the T
A new poll of 944 Massachusetts users of ride-hailing apps indicated that services like Uber and Lyft are adding to congestion on the roads and drawing passengers away from public […]