Lyft buys itself more time in KC; free rides for the rest of us
My questions about why ride-sharing service Lyft does not believe Kansas City ordinances apply to it – I wrote about all this last week, here – remain unanswered. But the company is not backing down from challenges by our local government, who (rather reasonably, in my opinion) are requesting that it permit up and comply with local laws.
Yesterday, Lyft scored a small victory in the dispute, when it won a motion to have Kansas City’s petition for a temporary restraining order on Lyft (filed by the city last Friday) moved to federal court. The Business Journal notes that Lyft’s notice of removal filing objects to the city’s TRO by alleging that “Kansas City is attempting to preserve the revenues and market dominance enjoyed by the companies that are operating under the provisions of the city’s ordinances. It also challenges Kansas City’s assertions that Lyft’s non-compliance to the city’s ordinances constitutes a public-safety risk.”
If nothing else, the move to federal court will buy Lyft some time to further ingratiate itself to the Kansas City market. That was made clear to me this morning, when I received a text message from the friendly folks at Lyft.
“David, your 10 free Lyft rides have been extended for another 15 days! Use them today!” the text read.
Because Lyft has more or less gone into media hibernation since the start of this dispute, it’s unclear whether it’s just early Lyft adopters like myself (I signed up the day before it launched in KC) or every local user that qualify for these bonus free rides. Did you get the same message? Let’s hear from you in the comments.
