I'm curious as to the forum's take and Detroit experiences on the disruption of the taxi market created by the emergence of the 'ride-sharing' services Uber, Lyft and the recently demised Sidecar.

Crain's reports in this article that GM is bolstering the struggling Lyft with an eye to a driverless-cab future.
GM and Lyft said they will work together to develop a network of self-driving cars that riders can call up on-demand, a vision of the future shared by the likes of Uber CEO Travis Kalanick and Google-parent Alphabet Inc. More immediately, America’s largest automaker will offer Lyft drivers vehicles for short-term rent through various hubs in U.S. cities, the companies said in separate statements Monday.
To see for myself, last summer I downloaded the Uber app to my iPhone and tested if by hailing a short ride from a walkable Starbucks, where I never see a passing cab, to my home.

I was impressed. Not only was a ride immediately on its way, I knew the price, the year and make of the car, the rating of the driver, and could see it moving toward me on the map [as well as seeing the movement of 3 or 4 others in the vicinity]. The driver was a genial retired guy who did it for side bucks about 15 hours a week.

On first blush it seems win-win. Customer gets better, lower cost service, drivers make decent money, no more shot-the-dark wondering if and when the cab was coming and who would be driving it. But I also read of darker stories, driver's getting squeezed, traditional cab companies who have to comply with regulations losing out and now the above, a driver-less taxi future where the jobs are gone.

Thoughts?