https://techcrunch.com/2022/07/22/can-alto-succeed-at-employee-driven-ride-hail/

Ride-hail startup Alto thinks the current gig worker-based market is inherently broken. Drivers’ salaries are squeezed by the costs of owning and maintaining a vehicle; riders aren’t guaranteed a high-quality service; cities have had to deal with angry taxi drivers; and the app-based companies themselves that have undercharged users to expand into new markets are still not seeing the profits from a growth-at-all costs mindset.

Alto was founded in 2018 to solve those problems by taking more control over the whole ride-hail experience. The startup actually leases its own fleet of ride-hail vehicles, employs drivers and is regulated as a transportation company. Yes, that means it’s more expensive to ride than your average Lyft or Uber, but CEO Will Coleman says Alto isn’t for everybody; it’s for customers who have a higher willingness to both pay and wait for a good thing.