1) Apps are transforming the way we hail our rides
Smartphone apps used by Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) like Uber and Lyft allow drivers and riders to directly coordinate services in real time without a middleman like a taxi-dispatcher, thus increasing the speed and efficiency of matching riders with drivers. Credit card transactions make payment quick, easy, and cashless. TNCs avoid the high overhead costs of taxi dispatch services, and their global brands give them an additional competitive edge over traditional taxi companies. Taxi companies are responding with their own apps, and some cities are creating city-wide apps for all taxi companies to use.