Lyft to Resume Shared Rides for First Time Since March 2020

     Lyft on Thursday said it will reinstate the option for passengers to book shared rides in select U.S. markets for the first time since the pandemic started in March 2020, when shared trips were dropped to prevent the spread of COVID.

     Lyft’s shared rides, which allow multiple passengers to divide fare costs, by riding together when they are traveling in the same direction, will not yet become available in New York City for a few months.

     "As the country reopens, we want our most affordable ride option to be available to our riders," Lyft President John Zimmer said in a statement, despite the higher losses that ride-sharing usually shows. 

     Pre-pandemic, however, shared rides made up only a small share of Lyft’s business, according to U.S. city data.

     Sharing rides not only keeps costs low for riders, but from Lyft’s perspective, the option for customers to travel together makes for more efficient booking and routing options, Lyft said. In addition, customers who share rides help the company to prevent other customers from waiting around for their rides.

     On Monday, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Denver again provide the options for Lyft customers to share ride.

    Before the pandemic started last year, Lyft operated shared rides in 18 cities, all of which will have the “carpooling” option returned in the next few months, although drivers may choose not to offer shared rides.

     Lyft, whose mask mandate for drivers and riders remains in effect, for safety reasons also limits shared rides to two passengers who are not sitting near each other in cars.

    In Lyft cars, for now: the middle and front seats will remain empty, as the highly contagious Delta variant of COVID is spreading a new wave of infections. As of Wednesday, only approximately 59% of Americans are fully vaccinated.