Local Taxi and Limousine firms embrace business connecting consumers with trained professional drivers.
LOS ANGELES – After solid upturns in ridership for three consecutive years, Los Angeles cab companies experienced a troubling drop of more than 20% over the first half of last year as unregulated ride-sharing companies began taking customers away. But with summer approaching, help is on the way for the city’s cab and limo companies.
asterRIDE, a national ride-hailing app that brings customers to licensed transportation companies, debuted in Los Angeles this week. asterRIDE adds Los Angeles to a rapidly growing list of cities across the country that have already embraced the ease of use and safe predictability of the app, including Chicago, Seattle, Orlando and Phoenix.
The one major benefit of asterRIDE its users cannot say enough about is that there is no surge pricing, unlike many unfortunate situations that have plagued other ride sharing apps. Horror stories abound of people taking short trips and finding themselves on the hook for far more than they bargained for. Transportation should mean peace of mind without worrying if the final tab will break the bank, and asterRIDE’s partnerships with top transportation firms means riders never need worry about surge pricing again. asterRIDE shields consumers from price surging during peak times and holidays because their partners follow local and national standards of the taxi and black car industry.
Naturally, asterRIDE’s arrival on the streets of Los Angeles generated plenty of enthusiasm among local cab companies: “I think Los Angeles consumers will be quite happy with what asterRIDE offers-safe, reliable rides without gouging the customer during peak times,” said Yevgeny Smolyar, president of LA Checker cab. “I can’t imagine that asterRIDE won’t be a huge success here.”
Limo companies such as Rio Limo and Sedan Service are also equally enthused:
“Why ride in someone’s used compact car when you can kick back in the lap of luxury with their choice of a limousine, executive sedan, SUV or even a party bus?” asks Marcelo Magalhaes, President of Rio Limo. “Other ride sharing apps leave too much to chance. But we found that riders don’t want their trip to be a gamble. They want it to be safe, affordable and easy to hail, which is exactly what asterRIDE brings.”
The smartphone app functions like Uber and Lyft, but rather than having its own fleet of drivers, it partners with well-established firms like Beverly Hills Cab, LA Checker Cab and LA Independent Cab, allowing consumers to secure a taxi, limo or black car in a short amount of time.
The newest addition to asterRIDE is-instaALERT, a safety feature that acts like a rider’s guardian angel. InstaALERT updates friends, family and co-workers on your ride progression and notifies designated individuals if something goes awry during your journey.
“It’s refreshing to see a ride service company so concerned with passenger safety,” said Leon Satanovsky, Vice President of Independent Cab Company of Los Angeles. “I’m quite certain that asterRIDE’s safety feature will be a big hit in Los Angeles, especially with women.”
Seth Rudin, asterRIDE’s CEO, said that adding instaALERT to the app was a simple decision.
“Passenger safety has become a controversial topic for ride-sharing companies throughout the world and in the Los Angeles area,” he said. “It’s important that we instill confidence in our service and a peace of mind to our customers. We also respect the wallets of our customers by protecting them from surge pricing.”
Some other key features of asterRIDE:
- Remembers settings and past bookings, option to save favorites, make search recommendations with Yelp ratings and more
- Make reservations in advance with Advance Booking Feature
- Single tap booking
- No cash needed. Electronic receipts provided.
- Receive notifications about the status of the bookings (text, email and in app)
- Track your driver from the time the driver is on his/her way to the end of the ride.
asterRIDE will be coming soon to Washington D.C., New York City, Miami, Atlanta and San Francisco. Available on iTunes and Google Play Store, asterRIDE works on both smartphones and tablets.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
