Lyft, Peninsula Clean Energy EV Ride-Hailing Program Surpasses 250,000 Rides

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
May 8, 2023

A ride-hail electrification pilot program launched in spring 2022 by California community choice aggregator Peninsula Clean Energy, Lyft and one of its Express Drive rental partners, Flexdrive, reached a key milestone by providing more than 250,000 electric vehicle rides across more than three million all-electric miles driven in the Bay Area.

As part of the first pilot program to specifically offer incentives for drivers to rent electric vehicles for use in a ride-hailing service, Lyft drivers have given rides in all of the 100 all-electric Kia Niros being utilized for the program from Flexdrive.

Since launching in April 2022, more than 300 ride-hail drivers have rented an EV, many of them for multiple months at a time. Peninsula Clean Energy is providing $500,000 toward a subsidy for ride-hail drivers to rent EVs at an affordable price.

Drivers are trained on EV use and benefits, and vehicles also carry EV education information for riders. Lyft provides drivers with a chance to opt into an unlimited fast charging plan through Lyft’s charging partners.

The program also features EV onboarding for drivers and access to an unlimited fast charging plan. Collection of EV fleet utilization and charging data will inform and facilitate further expansion among the ride-hailing fleet.