The ride-hailing industry has seen huge investments lately, as companies continue to raise billions in funding rounds. Lyft has introduced a new feature to up its offering in the industry and gain an edge over competitors. It now allows riders to make multiple stops — something which competitors are yet to introduce.
Previously, Lyft rides could only go straight from Point A to Point B, with no stops in between. Now riders can add and remove multiple stops whenever they book a ride. The desired route will be automatically updated so the driver can know the stops beforehand.
So the rider can sit back and enjoy the ride without having to give any instructions to the driver. To use the feature, riders will be required to first enter a pickup point and select between Lyft Plus and Premium. The add icon can be used to select a drop off point and request a ride. Once the ride has been booked, users can put multiple locations under the Destination tab.
The company is also offering to remove a stop at any time. Lyft said in its blog post: “Plans change. If for any reason you don’t need to make the stop you added, just tap on it and select ‘Remove Stop.’ Think of how an extra stop can add to your day—maybe it’s grabbing a coffee on the way to work or your dry cleaning before going home. We look forward to make this available to you.”
Riders previously had to request Lyft drivers to make stops. The new feature will now simplify the process and give riders more flexibility to plan their trip accordingly. Those who don’t have their own cars can now alter their routes based on convenience.
Lyft has also introduced other innovative features, while its fiercest rival Uber is yet to come up with such a feature. Lyft introduced scheduled rides so that riders can pre-book their rides, before Uber launched it. The newly launched feature will be available to users soon.
The recent merger of Uber and Didi Chuxing may have forced the company to up its offerings. The merger raised doubts on the strategic partnership of Didi Chuxing, Lyft, Ola and Grab, a move that was meant to take on Uber worldwide.