I have found that the drivers for Lyft are much happier than the drivers for Uber. This holds true even when a driver drives for both services. I asked several drivers why this is and the universal response was that Lyft treats them better, so they are happier to pick up Lyft customers.
I switched over to only using Lyft, but like the OP states, if Waymo came out tomorrow I'd probably switch to that.
My experience as well; started asking drivers which they preferred, and they all said Lyft. That alone is a good reason to switch. I'd happily pay a 10-20% premium if I can feel confident that it's encouraging better working conditions.
This goes for other markets as well, it's just generally hard to get good information.
Ditto, except I’ve mostly stopped using Lyft in favor of ReachNow Ride which is driven by employees (i.e. not contractors) who show up in a BMW and generally drive like their income is decoupled from working long hours and the need to turn over lots of rides.
If you’re in a market where they operate, I can heartily recommend it.
I've had a slightly different experience. My Lyft drivers have definitely been happier and nicer, but most of them say that there is no real difference between the two services from a driver's point of view. I'm not sure how that could be the case.
Sexual harassment cases were on the HQ, not the drivers. Also, most drivers drive for multiple companies. All they need is 'one more app' on their phones, and they're off to go. Since Lyft/Uber/everyone is monitoring their competitors' s prices, they make sure they adapt pricing to make themselves antagonistic.
Thus the drivers won't care which app is running, since they will be making (more or less) the same $$$$$. All they need it to do is ensure they are driving people around/keeping busy, and if one company is bleeding customers, they will simple start 'the other app' and continue driving.
I may be oversimplifying the above, but it's the general idea/practice.
I wasn't really questioning how the drivers can easily work for multiple companies. That is pretty clear. My question is really around how I can generally have nicer Lyft drivers, with drivers having no preference on what service they drive for. Why wouldn't I have similar driver experiences on each app?
I feel like it would force prices down but it would also force Uber/Lyft to reduce their take, because presumably drivers don't care whether the ride was $10 or $11 if they get $7 either way.
While this is true, I feel like there are more 'average' folks looking to pick up extra income on the Lyft platform, as opposed to Uber. In US cities like SF, NYC, LA, Seattle, Chicago, it seems like most of the Uber drivers I encounter these days are former taxi or livery drivers -- Uber is clearly their profession. It's apparent in their approaches to discussing the destination (particular landmarks, hotel names, business names, cross streets), and in sometimes in their driving style. And they're usually driving a car that optimizes for rideshare/taxi service type driving: Accords, Corollas, Camrys, Prius, etc. The conversation tends to be all business with a few pleasantries.
On Lyft in the same cities, I always get a much more oddball mix of vehicles, with much more diverse conversation from the driver. I've had biotech founders looking to recruit and make beer money pick me up on Lyft rides going from the South Bay to the SF in the Bay Area, real estate agents and recruiters drive me in many cities, and many others that are clearly doing Lyft as a side gig rather than a profession. On the downside, this usually means that they're less aggressive drivers in terms of optimizing for speed and route efficiency, but it can make for a more interesting ride and better chitchat along the way.
As a result, I almost always default to Lyft unless there's a huge price spread in Uber's favor.
I switched over to only using Lyft, but like the OP states, if Waymo came out tomorrow I'd probably switch to that.