Lyft Expands, Passes Uber in Total U.S. Cities

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Lyft is expanding into 24 new cities, including Kansas City, Mo.

By Kurt Wagner2014-04-24 16:00:07 UTC

Lyft, the ridesharing service that matches regular drivers with passengers in need of a ride, expanded into 24 new cities on Thursday, the company's largest single-day expansion to date.

The move means Lyft now operates in 60 U.S. cities, surpassing competitor Uber which currently operates in 46, according to Uber's website. Uber does have more cities worldwide, however, and announced its 100th on Wednesday.

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Lyft has been preparing for this launch for months, Lyft cofounder John Zimmer told Mashable. The process is more complex than simply flipping a switch on the app, he explains. To ensure supply can match the expected demand, Zimmer says that each new city will start with roughly 100 drivers, who have all been vetted by Lyft employees ahead of time.

Lyft has been gaining some name recognition the past few months, in large part because of the company's recent funding (Lyft raised $250 million earlier in April) and competitive pricing promotions to compete with other services like Uber and Sidecar.

In March, Lyft announced Happy Hour, a drop in ride costs when supply is greater than demand. A few weeks later in Early April, Lyft cut the costs of all rides by 20%, a promotion that led to a ride increase of more than 10%, says Zimmer.

The promotion went so well, in fact, that Lyft is extending it even further. Beginning Thursday, passengers will now get 30% off initial ride costs, and users in the any of the 24 new cities will get free rides for the first two weeks.

One area to watch with Lyft's expansion will be how states respond to ridesharing, which has dealt with resistance in the past due to state transportation laws. Ridesharing companies have run into roadblocks in states like Calfiornia and New York in the past, and have dealt with fines and cease-and-desist orders on multiple occasions. Despite these previous issues, Zimmer says he isn't worried about Lyft's current expansion plans.

"[Backlash] is hard to predict," he says, pointing out that often times resistance comes from local taxi commissions meaning the state is not always involved. "We're going to take the same approach we've always taken which is to do everything we can to work with local officials but also to stand up for our community."

Here's a look at the 24 new cities Lyft will be operating in starting Thursday:

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Topics: Business, expansion, happy hour, Lyft, Mobile, ridesharing, Startups, Travel & Leisure, uber