Lyft Launches in Canada for the First Time

Lyft, the U.S. ride hailing company has just launched in Toronto, making it the first time the company has launched in Canada.

While Uber has been under scrutiny in the past year and has had investigations around the world by governments, Lyft is often thought of as the more friendly version for ride hailing.

The company’s Toronto general manager, Tim Houghton remarked, “This is a monumental day for Lyft.”

The first ride in Canada was taken by Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman to deliver toys to a local hospital.

Houghton commented, “Passengers want another option and drivers know that Lyft was built on caring for its driver community and want that experience.”

According to Houghton, there have already been over 50,000 people in Toronto who have downloaded the Lyft app in 2017.

It has not been said if the company is planning to launch the service to other Canadian cities.

Lyft could be going public soon as the company raised $1 billion this past October and in September had hired an IPO advisory firm.