High-tech ride-hailing arrived in Pittsburgh in 2014 when Lyft rolled into town. Uber followed not long after. The new services reignited a decades-old battle between traditional taxi drivers and jitneys, a low-cost and unregulated alternative with deep ties to Pittsburgh history.
Jitneys originated in Los Angeles in 1914. They were a grassroots response to high transit fares imposed by legally sanctioned streetcar monopolies. Less than a year later, in 1915, Pittsburgh had several jitney bus operators. They became the forerunners to later jitney cab operations and 21st century app-based ride hailing services, and August Wilson paid homage to the jitney’s place in the Steel City’s urban fabric with his 1979 play, Jitney.
When Lyft and Uber pulled into Pittsburgh, writers glossed over the deeper history of informal livery services in the city. It’s a story of resistance to economic hegemony and racial segregation featuring characters who easily could have found themselves as role models for Wilson’s play…