Moto Taxis

I’ve read a few online articles detailing the possibility of a service that is similar to Uber or Lyft, but with motorcycles instead of cars. If you aren’t familiar with these companies, Uber and Lyft are companies that allow people to become taxi drivers with their own vehicles. A smartphone app allows people to contact drivers who are working, which streamlines the driver/passenger exchange. I believe that anyone can apply to be a driver (I’m sure there’s a background check) and they can make their own hours. Personally, I think the motorcycle version is a great idea! It has the possibility of getting people more interested in motorcycles.

 

I believe that Uber is starting to implement this in heavily populated cities in Asia. Its motorcycle service is called UberMoto. I can definitely see this being way more in demand there than in the U.S. as many cities utilize scooters and motorcycles much more.

 

Things that I can see as problematic with this service are sharing helmets, lack of knowledge on how to be a motorcycle passenger, the need for physical contact, and weight restrictions. Something will definitely need to be implemented to sanitize helmets between passengers (no one wants head lice). Anyone who’s ridden with a first time passenger knows how difficult and dangerous it can be (see here for my post on being a good passenger). The physical contact thing wouldn’t necessarily be an issue for me, but it could if a passenger’s hygiene wasn’t the greatest. Lastly, someone who drastically outweighs the rider should not be a passenger. This is not negotiable. Turning away someone for their weight could lead to some hurt feelings for sure, but it’d be necessary.

 

Once I gave my friend a ride on my old Ducati. His motorcycle was left at someone else’s house overnight and he needed a ride to pick it up. Both of us weighed well over 200 lbs. It took all of my effort to control my bike with all of that weight on it...Not safe! Allowing a passenger who is very heavy would be a severe liability!

 

Even with the drawbacks, I think this could be an awesome service. Imagine getting paid for cruising around on your motorcycle! That’s my kinda job!

 

“There's a misconception that Lyft is just a better version of the taxi. You know, I think that's just scratching the surface of what we're doing.” - Logan Green