Lyft unifies transportation options inside its app

Lyft is countering Uber's moves by making it easier to find every transportation option inside its app -- including the ones that won't give the company a dime. It's rolling out updates that unify transportation searches, whether it's bikes, scooters, rideshares, rentals or mass transit. The standard search now displays every choice within view rather than defaulting to ridesharing, and lets you compare options once you've set a destination. Tabs let you narrow the searches if you're only interested in one option.

The changes should take effect over the "next few weeks."

Lyft co-founder John Zimmer pitched this as a reflection of the company's view that future cities will be "centered around people, not cars." However, this is arguably more about boosting exposure to Lyft's various services than anything else. You may be more likely to take a scooter if you realize that it's not much slower than a car, or choose a bike if it's right near the subway stop. Whatever Lyft loses to mass transit it might gain through more overall customers.