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GM is planning on taking over San Francisco’s with the introduction of their Maven car service.
Beacon Transcript- General Motors is planning on winning over San Francisco’s residents by introducing them to their Maven car services.
General Motors (GM), the automobile giant, is not at its first try in the alternative transportation market, as the company has already introduced its service in nine other cities. The Maven program is currently being used in cities such as Washington D.C., New York, Los Angeles, Boston, and Chicago.
But in a city that can already boast a number of popular car-sharing programs and services the likes of Zipcar and Getaround, besides the already famous Uber, Lyft and regular taxis, the company would have to offer more than just your average services in order to make a breakthrough on the city’ market.
The Maven car services, which were first released at the beginning of 2016, will make their way into San Francisco starting with Friday this week, after being announced last week on Thursday evening.
As one of the newest car-ride services besides the Lyft Express Drive, which was initiated in the summer, Maven has nonetheless gathered quite a number of miles. Between Maven car service’s almost 10,500 members and the Lyft Express drivers, approximately 15 million miles have already between reached.
Maven’s first breach in the San Fran car-sharing market came in late September, as the services started with a one-way rental, similar to the one offered by Zipcar, in which a driver could pick and drive a car to its destination without having to return it to its initial location.
Maven, according to its representatives, will stand out from the other car service, in this one-way rental service and in general thanks to the cars and technology it offers.
The ride-sharing program will feature cars acquired from General Motors that will be equipped with the latest technology and will offer the rider a fully-connected driving experience.
As the Maven cars can be unlocked from the driver’s smartphone, which in itself is not new in the domain, they will also feature a 4G LTE-based wireless connectivity and other high-tech integrations the likes of Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, OnStar, and the SiriusXM radio.
The car services will start out with an initial fleet of 60 cars, distributed throughout the city’s busiest areas, and will come with an hour cost of $8.
Will the reader be using the Maven car service, or would you rather stick to the already familiar and trusted ride-sharing programs the city has to offer?
Image Source: Flickr
