During the short period that they’ve been operating, ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft have revolutionized the taxi and related-service businesses. Uber alone has handled well over a billion rides since its founding; and it is located around the United States and around the globe.

Yet, despite the growth of Uber and Lyft, they are NOT as popular as some people believe. Here are interesting observations by Felix Richter, writing for Statista:

“Do you stand on the side of the street to hail a cab or do prefer to use technology? A new Pew Research study has found that the vast majority of Americans have not used ride-hailing apps like Uber and Lyft. Despite their increasing prominence in media circles, 51 percent of U.S. adults haven’t heard of such apps while only 15 percent have actually used them to hail a cab.”

What does this mean? The taxi industry has a real battle on its hands; but that does not mean the demise of traditional cabs. Taxi companies must do a better job of promoting their strengths, of which there are many (stricter licensing of both cabs and drivers, pre-set fares, less personal information on passengers, and more).

 Take a look a look at the following Statista chart.