Lyft Line Vs Curb: Which NYC Ride-Sharing Service Reigns Supreme?

NEW YORK, NY — Ride-sharing has exploded in New York City. The streets are teeming with drivers working for services such as Uber and Lyft just waiting for New Yorkers to cry out, "I can't bear taking the subway right now."

Patch recently tested four car services — Uber, Lyft, Via and the good ol' yellow cab — in a head-to-head race from the Upper East Side to the World Trade Center. But now we're pitting four ride-sharing services against each other.

This time the format is a bit different. Instead of a four-way head-to-head matchup, Patch is going to test services against each other in a bracket-style tournament. The rules of the ride will be the same — passengers will order their respective rides at Third Avenue and East 86th Street at the same time heading to the same place. Whoever's car gets to the World Trade Center the fastest will be declared the winner.

The contestants: Uber Pool, Lyft Line, Via and Curb.

In Patch's first matchup Uber Pool proved victorious against Via. Patch reporter Noah Manskar took these rides starting around 10 a.m. on two Thursday mornings one week apart.

Week Two's matchup features Lyft Line and yellow cab service Curb, which just recently introduced ride sharing. The same route was followed. This time, Patch reporter Brendan Krisel hailed the ride shares at the same time on two consecutive days.

Lyft Line

Price: $19.57 with tip

Pickup wait: 1 minute

Pickup location: Third Avenue and East 86th Street SE Corner

Trip time: 27 minutes

Drop-off location: Intersection of West Street and Fulton Street

I hailed a Lyft Line when I was two blocks away from the pickup location and was matched with a ride almost immediately. My driver Harouna actually beat me to the pickup spot, which was pretty impressive.

I entered the car in the front passenger seat as two riders were already sitting in the back. Harouna told me that he was dropping the first two passengers off before we'd be heading to my destination, which I appreciated knowing up front.

The other passengers — a couple from California — were headed to the South Street Seaport, so we were heading the same way. There was a bit of a jam getting on to the FDR but the ride downtown was pretty smooth overall. It took about 20 minutes to drop the Californians off at the Seaport.

After the drop off, Harouna pulled a nifty u-turn to head the opposite direction on South Street. The move took us right to One World Trade Center and I was able to hop out at a stoplight on the corner of West Street and Fulton Street 27 minutes after pickup. The drop off location is a no stopping zone, but Harouna said because we were at the light he wouldn't get ticketed.

Curb

Price: $28.75 with tip

Pickup wait: 2-3 minutes

Pickup location: Third Avenue and East 86th Street NW Corner

Trip time: 18 minutes

Drop-off location: Intersection of West Street and Fulton Street

Considering the amount of taxis swarming near Third Avenue and East 86th Street, it took me two tries to hail a Curb ride share before I was matched with a driver. The app then gave me the number of the taxi that would be picking me up and told me to walk across the street to the northwest corner of the intersection.

A yellow cab pulled up about three minutes later to pick me up. It felt a little strange getting inside the cab without first having to hail it. I told the driver where to drop me off and Curb informed me we would only pick up passengers if they were on my route.

My driver ended up not stopping for another passenger, which was an added bonus. The FDR was once again crowded, but traffic was manageable. My driver took the FDR, got the exit onto South Street and took it right to 1 World Trade Center. I ended up being dropped off at the same intersection at West Street and Fulton Street.

From pickup to drop off it only took 18 minutes to get from the Upper East Side to 1 World Trade Center, which was a pretty impressive feat.

The Verdict:

The overall experience of the Lyft Line ride was a little nicer — more spacious car, friendlier driver, working air conditioning — but you can't beat speed. The Curb ride, while a little more expensive, got me to my destination nearly 10 minutes faster than the Lyft.

The Winner: Curb

Do you agree with our verdict? Let us know in the comments. And check in next week for round three, featuring Uber Pool and Curb.

Photo by Shutterstock