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Lyft just made a hired job as he focuses on closer collaboration with governments.
Anthony Foxx, former secretary of the Ministry of Transport of President Obama between 2013 and 2017, will serve as policy officer for Lyft and advisor to its co-founders.
Foxx's initiative reflects the increasingly central role of technology companies in transportation. He is the first former transportation secretary to join a startup in Silicon Valley. In May, he lamented in a speech that, while he was the highest government transport official, he had less real-time information on the operation of his country's transport system than the application of well-known Waze route planning.
Foxx joined Lyft because he is attracted to the company's mission and values, he said in a statement on Tuesday.
Related: Lyft makes carbon neutral travel to fight climate change
Foxx should focus on developing more partnerships with governments and reshaping transit systems in cities.
Foxx grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina, and found that transportation can constrain communities instead of connecting them. Highways surrounded three sides of his neighborhood, leaving him isolated and economically disadvantaged. In a medium-sized article, Foxx recalled that his grandparents were driving their cars occasionally to town to avoid buying moldy meat and seafood at the nearest stores. Many of his neighbors could not afford to own a car, a privilege that Foxx did not lose.
Foxx became mayor of Charlotte, interesting especially to transportation. He now joins a long-standing team to stop car ownership: the founders of Lyft blamed US cities for cars rather than people, and were alarmed that most Americans spend more money than food.
Foxx is the second Obama leader to join Lyft. Former Senior Advisor, Valerie Jarrett, was named to the company's board of directors last year.
Lyft, long overshadowed by his biggest rival Uber, has resurfaced since Uber was the victim of a series of scandals in 2017. Lyft, who is still much smaller than Uber, has crossed the cap of a billion rides in September and has expanded to offer bikes – another area Foxx will focus on.
Carpool companies have been criticized for contributing to the worsening of congestion in cities, with customers switching from public transit systems to services such as Uber and Lyft. In August, New York City passed legislation to limit the number of carpool vehicles. This change could have a significant impact on Lyft's business, especially if other cities did the same. The Foxx government experience can be crucial if congestion problems become more common.
Both companies are putting more and more emphasis on partnerships with governments and public transit. This summer, Lyft began to integrate public transit into its application. Earlier this year, Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber, said he would like to run the city's bus network.
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