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Google's Waze-like app for public transit hits five more cities
Last year, Google incubator Area 120 announced a public transit app that works in a similar way to Waze. Users of Pigeon report transit information to help others know if they're likely to face delays or other issues. Until now, it's only been available in New York City, but as of today, it's going live in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.
San Francisco set to become first US city to ban e-cigarettes
San Francisco has edged towards becoming the first US city to ban sales of e-cigarettes, as well as the manufacturing and distribution of them on city property. A preliminary vote saw city supervisors unanimously approve a ban on e-cigarettes the Food and Drug Administration has yet to review. It hasn't assessed any yet and companies have until 2021 to apply for reviews of their products under the agency's draft guidelines.
Uber's bike service is cutting into car rides
If you suspected that Uber's Jump bike sharing would be popular enough to cut into its mainstream car service, you suspected correctly. Jump has revealed that more than 63,000 customers in San Francisco have taken over 625,000 trips since a launch in the city in 2018, and that this popularity is affecting car rides in the area. While an initial study in July showed that bikes were starting to replace cars, Jump noted that the trend had "remained consistent" since then -- the more people relied on pedal power, the larger the decrease in car trips. That was particularly true for peak periods.
Scoot will add locks to its scooters to combat theft and vandalism
In August, San Francisco's Municipal Transportation Agency awarded two companies, Scoot and Skip, permits to operate their scooters in the city. The scooter pilot program has now been running for a month and Scoot says it has learned a few things during that time, including that its Kick scooters are a lot easier to steal and vandalize than it once thought. Because of that, the company will start adding locks to its scooters come December.
Uber, Google, Facebook: Your experiments have gone too far
It was 2014, around the time when Travis Kalanick referred to Uber as his chick-magnet "Boober" in a GQ article, that I'd realized congestion in San Francisco had gone insane. Before there was Uber, getting across town took about ten minutes by car and there was nowhere to park, ever. With Boober in play, there was parking in places there never were spaces, but the streets were so jammed with empty, one-person "gig economy" cars circling, sitting in bus zones, mowing down bicyclists whilst fussing with their phones, still endlessly going nowhere, alone, that walking across the city was faster.
Judge rejects Lime request to block e-scooter rivals in San Francisco
Lime just lost a last-minute bid to delay the launch of San Francisco's electric scooter pilot program. A judge has denied the company's request for a temporary restraining order that would have blocked Skip and Scoot from launching their services in the city on October 15th. The company had wanted the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency to reevaluate its application for an e-scooter permit, and claimed it had "no choice" but to use the court to force the city's hand. Not surprisingly, both sides are clashing over the outcome.
Ford Mustang Bullitt review: Almost Steve McQueen cool
Nostalgia is powerful -- it's why we still have Star Wars movies. It's the reason everyone loves the '80s, and if you've ever talked to someone about their favorite music, it's usually from bands that came out while they were in high school. So when Ford announced its special-edition Mustang Bullitt on the 50th anniversary of the movie that starred Steve McQueen -- and contains arguably one of the best car-chase scenes in cinematic history -- the general consensus was "well, of course it did."
Audi to unveil the 2019 e-tron on September 17th
Audi's first all-electric car, the 2019 e-tron, will make its global debut on September 17th in San Francisco. The automaker will also reveal the price and specifications, and US customers will be able to place a $1,000 deposit to reserve and configure a vehicle from Audi's website on the same day. The new reservation system is a big part of the launch, with Audi creating a Tesla-like process for customers to place and track orders online or with a dealer. The e-tron is expected to arrive in showrooms in the first part of 2019, said Audi.
San Francisco aims to issue electric scooter permits next month
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) said this week that it is aiming to issue electric scooter permits next month, and the staff who have been reviewing the 12 permit applications will make their recommendations in the coming weeks. The move to require permits came after Bird, Spin and LimeBike unveiled their e-scooter sharing programs earlier this year, resulting in hundreds of scooters peppering public areas and taking up sidewalk space. They quickly became a nuisance and in April, the city told the three companies that they had to remove their scooters from the streets. Permit applications opened up soon thereafter.
Uber is set to join the San Francisco scooter craze
Uber reportedly wants a piece of the growing scooter-sharing biz in San Francisco: according to Axios, the ride-hailing giant has submitted an application for the city's upcoming scooter-sharing program. San Francisco created the year-long program in an effort to regulate the new means of transportation, because its sudden popularity and the lack of rules quickly made scooters an epidemic. People would use them on sidewalks and then toss them anywhere once they run out of power, making it difficult for persons with disability to get past them.
San Francisco demands Uber and Lyft reveal driver pay (updated)
Ridesharing companies have been repeatedly been accused of paying meager wages to drivers, and San Francisco has had enough. City Attorney Dennis Herrera has sent subpoenas to Uber and Lyft demanding that the companies hand over records from 2015 onward for driver pay, benefits, and whether workers are considered employees or independent contractors. Herrera's office wants Uber and Lyft to honor a California Supreme Court decision that requires companies to prove that their drivers are contractors, and to provide appropriate benefits if they don't meet that criteria.
San Francisco temporarily removes electric scooters for permit process
San Francisco is about to end its electric scooter scourge... for a while. The city's Municipal Transportation Agency has posted its permit application for companies wanting to operate e-scooters under a one-year pilot program and accompanying law, signalling that the two-wheelers need to leave the streets until services obtain permits. The firms have until June 4th to remove their scooters without facing impounding and fines (up to $100 per scooter), and have to submit their permit applications by June 7th. No more than five companies will operate at the same time during the pilot period.
Lyft may be getting into the electric scooter game
Lyft seems to be eyeing a move into the electric scooter craze -- the company is considering applying for a permit to run a service in San Francisco, The Information reported, and it's in the early stages of working on prototypes. Some companies like Bird, Lime and Spin already have scooters on the city's streets, but a established brand like Lyft making inroads could change the market drastically, opening the gateway for more big names.
Amazon will open checkout-free stores in Chicago and San Francisco
You no longer have to make a beeline to Seattle if you want to shop at an Amazon Go store. Amazon has posted job listings for store managers in both Chicago and San Francisco, making it clear where the automated stores are headed next. The company didn't confirm opening dates or locations in a response to the Seattle Times. However, there are already some clues: Curbed noted that Amazon has a building permit for a store in Chicago's Loop, while a San Francisco Chronicle report claimed that a store would open near Union Square.
San Francisco proposes rules to fight its electric scooter epidemic
San Francisco officials have been promising rules to curb the invasion of electric scooters, and now we have an idea of what those rules could be. The Municipal Transportation Agency has proposed a two-year permitting test program that would limit the city to five e-scooter permits, and no more than 500 scooters for each permit. In other words, there would be no more than 2,500 scooters in San Francisco at any one time -- a blessing to residents who are practically tripping over the two-wheelers. Companies would have to abide by guidelines to keep those permits, too.
Ford's electric GoBikes have arrived in San Francisco
Bike-sharing company Motivate is expanding its San Francisco offering to include electric versions of Ford's GoBikes. They'll be available at no extra cost in the same way as Ford's regular GoBikes, which can be unlocked with the accompanying app or via the Clipper card. The roll out will initially include 250 bikes, which are designed to give riders an added boost while pedalling -- up to 18mph in fact -- so you'll still be able to ride in bike lanes.
Uber buys San Francisco bike-sharing service Jump
Uber is getting serious about its bike-sharing aspirations. The company just announced its purchase of Jump, the bike-sharing platform featuring "electric, dock-less" bikes. Previously, Jump bikes were available in the Uber app as part of a pilot program. Rather than going to a specific rack in the city, bikes from Jump can be dropped off and locked up wherever it's legal to park a bike. Details are scant at the moment, but it looks like you can order a bike as easy as you'd order a black car or Prius. You can also continue to use the Jump app if you'd rather.
Facebook is hosting an online abuse summit with other tech leaders
Facebook is trying to bring all the wars it's fighting under one roof. At the "Fighting Abuse @Scale" conference later next month, the social network will host talks on combating fake news, online fraud, spam and abuse in general. There's a special focus on how the different companies in attendance are using AI and machine learning to achieve their goals.
Amazon expands Whole Foods delivery to Atlanta and San Francisco
Last month, Amazon launched its Whole Foods delivery service, allowing Prime members in some Austin, Cincinnati, Dallas and Virginia Beach neighborhoods to order Whole Foods groceries through Prime Now and have them delivered within two hours. Today, Amazon announced that the service has expanded to select areas of Atlanta and San Francisco. Customers in those regions can order produce, bakery items, dairy, meat, seafood, flowers and everyday staples through Prime Now. San Francisco customers can also order alcohol through the service.
Uber’s latest venture is a bike-sharing service in San Francisco
Uber's piloting a new service in San Francisco alongside dockless bike-sharing startup Jump. Uber Bike will let users rent one of Jump's 250 bikes, charging $2 for the first 30 minutes and an additional per-minute fee thereafter. Jump was granted a permit by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency earlier this month, which made it the first company to operate a dockless bike-sharing program in the city. Jump's 250 bikes should launch around the city between now and March and the SFMTA may allow the company to release 250 more after nine months, depending on how things go. The permit was issued for 18 months, during which the SFMTA will evaluate the program and the public's response.
