Lyft Is Paying Chicagoans $550 To Ditch Their Car For A Month

Do you think you could go a month without your car? Lyft is paying some people from Chicago to do just that. 

TheVerge – Lyft is raising the stakes in its mission to dominate all modes of transportation in major cities. Starting in August, the ride-hailing company will offer 100 residents of Chicago $550 each in credit to Lyft and several other mobility services if they ditch their personal vehicles for a month. It’s a bold, if slightly gimmicky, way to highlight the high costs associated with car ownership, while also promoting cheaper alternatives of getting around.

The way it breaks down is this:

• $300 in Lyft credits
• $45 for a Divvy bike membership
• $100 in Zipcar credit
• $105 for public transportation

Lyft will give this opportunity to 100 car owners in the City of Chicago and will rely on the honor system that they won’t use their cars for a month. The recipients will be asked to document their journey using social media.

This is a pretty cool promotion that will only cost Lyft a little more than $50K.

This wouldn’t work as well in a city like Rockford but I can see this easily working in a big city like Chicago. Especially in the summer when walking is always an option.

Owning a car in the city can be very expensive. Parking alone can cost some people as much as $1000 a month.

When I worked in the city it was ALWAYS preferable to take public transportation into the city and get around that way. It was a huge (and expensive) pain in the butt whenever I had to drive into the city.

Lyft thinks that car ownership in the city will be a thing of the past by the year 2025. I don’t think it will be that dramatic that quickly but getting around without a car is easier than ever and fewer cars make everyone happy.