[nfbmi-talk] FW: [State-affiliate-leadership-list] Free Rides at Washington Seminar via New Sidecar NFB of MA Accessibility Agreement - Prepare Now to Use this Benefit #NFBWS14

Wed Jan 22 19:07:44 UTC 2014

From: State-affiliate-leadership-list [mailto:state-affiliate-leadership-list-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Mika Pyyhkala
Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2014 1:47 PM
To: State Affiliate Leadership List
Subject: Re: [State-affiliate-leadership-list] Free Rides at Washington Seminar via New Sidecar NFB of MA Accessibility Agreement - Prepare Now to Use this Benefit #NFBWS14

Mike,

Prices are the same or quite possibly less.  I will get some price quotes eg from the Holiday Inn to the house/senate buildings.  Any idea on a building to pick other than one randomly?

The nice thing about Sidecar also is while you are requesting the ride it gives you the final price that this rrride will be in the final confirmation screen before you press the final submit button.  So if the driver gets stuck in traffic its not necessarily going to be more.  You have the option to give more but you don't have too.

One thing all of you I'm sure will find interesting is when these TNC apps launched, many of them would give you a suggested amount to pay, but it was up to you the passenger to pay either less, exactly what the computer suggested, or pay more for what you thought was above average service.  So you as the customer were the ultimate decision maker on the price of the service you would pay.  You essentially paid what you thought was fair taking in to account the computers suggestion & your trip experience.  Obviously this is a huge disrupting force to the status quoe way of doing things!

As the services have expanded, some like Sidecar, have moved to a more standard pricing model where the company is going to just give you the price and not let you lower it.

Right now Lyft, another Sidecar competetor, still lets you choose exactly what to pay, but they may at some point shift off this.

I think this feature is a good product differentiater.

I would say 95% of the time I would accept what the computer gave me but sometimes I would raise or lower it.

Best,

Mika

From: State-affiliate-leadership-list [mailto:state-affiliate-leadership-list-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Mike Freeman
Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2014 12:52 PM
To: 'State Affiliate Leadership List'
Subject: Re: [State-affiliate-leadership-list] Free Rides at Washington Seminar via New Sidecar NFB of MA Accessibility Agreement - Prepare Now to Use this Benefit #NFBWS14

And how are the prices compared to regular taxis?

Mike

From: State-affiliate-leadership-list [mailto:state-affiliate-leadership-list-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Cathy Jackson
Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2014 9:23 AM
To: State Affiliate Leadership List
Subject: Re: [State-affiliate-leadership-list] Free Rides at Washington Seminar via New Sidecar NFB of MA Accessibility Agreement - Prepare Now to Use this Benefit #NFBWS14

How many passengers will the sidecar accommodate? I am guessing a standard car that will carry 4 or 5 passengers.

Cathy Jackson

Sent from my iPhone

On Jan 22, 2014, at 11:52 AM, Mika Pyyhkala <Mika_Pyyhkala at nhp.org> wrote:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sidecar-ride/id524617679?mt=8

(please forward to your own state lists & networks)

Hi,

If you have an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, please activate the above link from your device and download the free Sidecar app.  Then go through the account setup process.  By doing this, you will have completed all necessary prerequisites to getting free ground transportation in DC for Washington Seminar #NFBWS14!  If you do this now, before leaving for Washington, it will be one less thing to do during an already busy week!

You may have read a couple of weeks ago that the NFB of Massachusetts along with 2 members reached an accessibility agreement with Sidecar.  Sidecar is a transportation network company or e-hail app.  You can request a Sidecar ride from an app on your iOS smartphone, track the arrival of the car in real time, and payment is cashless.  We worked with Timothy Elder of the TRE Legal Group along with Sidecar to reach this cooperative accessibility agreement.

I use these TNC or e-hail apps all the time, and whenever I have to take a traditional taxi, it is really like going back to the dark ages.  These apps are so much more convenient and efficient than using a traditional taxi.  For example, I know exactly when my driver will be pulling up so I can go outside precisely at the right time, and its great to just get out of the car & not have to deal with cash or credit cards in the vehicle, and of course receipts are emailed & accessible!

Sidecar wants to introduce attendees of the 2014 Washington seminar to their service, and during the seminar, a promotion code will be made available that will give new and existing Sidecar users a $20 credit.  The code will only be available from Sunday 1/26 to Thursday 1/30, and must be entered while you are physically in Washington, DC.

The promotion code will be announced during the Great Gathering Inn meeting, and may also be available through other communication channels.

Please reply to this email with questions you have, or questions you think other attendees may have about this, so that we can start creating a frequently asked questions document.

The most important thing right now is that you, and your members, download and install Sidecar, and set up an account, so you will be ready to take advantage of the promotion once in DC!  You may also want to start getting familiar with the app in advance.

If each of you downloads this app and receives the $20 credit, this will significantly lower your affiliate & members ground transportation costs in DC.  Think going to and from the hill, dinners, site seeing, going back to the airport or train station, etc.

One challenge we often see is that your techy early adopters will try something like this, but people that do not have an afinity to technology may not try it.  So any suggestions you may have for reaching people that don't have a real passion or afinity to technology who would benefit from this would be very helpful!

Also please note that the Android app may not currently be accessible, and there are documented work plans to add accessibility to Android.  There are also documented accessibility work plans to add access to the map data in the iPhone app, but you can still use the iPhone app now with VoiceOver to request and complete rides.

Thank you in advance, and happy riding!

Best,

Mika Pyyhkala, NFB of Massachusetts

Sidecar Web site: http://side.cr

Sidecar Twitter: @sidecar

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