🔷📉 Revel's NYC Rideshare Business Is Shrinking, As Trip Data Reappears
AutoMarketplace published article on May 14th showing Revel's trip data disappeared from NYC Open Data after October 2023. Revel's base data has now reappeared and shows shrinking rideshare business
Previously missing Revel NYC base data is now published on NYC Open Data
Revel’s NYC rideshare business’ daily average trips has declined 24% from its October 2023 peak of 5,847 trips to 4,430 trips in April 2024
Revel’s “unique dispatched vehicles” peaked at 509 vehicles in November 2023 and has now fallen to 442 vehicles (as of April 2024)
We continue to predict Revel will close its NYC rideshare business within the next 6 to 12 months to focus on City EV charging infrastructure
As we reported on May 14th, Revel’s NYC TLC-licensed “Black Car” base (Electric Peppers LLC) appeared to have, according to NYC Open Data, stopped dispatching trips after October 2023. Clearly, this could not have been the case as Revel has been, and is still actively operating, a rideshare service in NYC. Revel’s trip data was missing, while other base data, including Uber and Lyft, continued to be published.
This was particularly odd as Revel was (and still is) the third largest base in NYC!
“Outside of Uber and Lyft, you can see a base named Electric Peppers LLC had multiple months where it was the third largest dispatching base and growing rapidly from roughly 1,600 average daily trips in January 2023 to nearly 6,000 average daily trips in October 2023. This base almost 4x’d its trip volume in 10 months! The DBA name of Electric Peppers LLC should show as Revel and many of the company’s vehicles are still affiliated with this base.
What’s noteworthy is Revel’s base Electric Peppers disappears after October 2023, going from the third largest base in NYC with 181,264 trips (or ~5,847 average daily trips) across 505 vehicles to ZERO trips 💀 in November and December 2023! This obviously can’t be the case as Revel is still dispatching trips everyday in NYC.”
- AutoMarketplace (May 14, 2024)
Revel Trip Data Is Back
We’re not going to speculate as to why Revel trip data has now reappeared, but it’s back. Hopefully our reporting helped flag the error to the TLC or other relevant data collection authorities. What’s important is the trip data is back and what it tells us about Revel’s NYC rideshare business.
This is also interesting to analyze given Revel’s recent announcement that the company is abandoning its W2 employee-driver model by September 12th and adopting a 1099 independent contractor model, where it leases TLC-plated vehicles to drivers.
Article continues after advertisement
Revel Rideshare Is Shrinking
Let’s start by clarifying where our speculation was wrong in May. Revel does not need a High-Volume For-Hire Services (HVFHS) “base” license, as its daily dispatched trips still remain below 10,000 trips. In fact, Revel’s trips and total dispatched vehicles have been declining. To be fair to us, we were blind to the trip data post October 2023, when there seemed to be rapidly increasing daily trip trend, that wasn’t impacted by seasonality. As it turned out, October 2023, the last data point that was available when we published our May 14th article, ended up being Revel’s trip peak! 🤷
Revel’s shrinking NYC rideshare business does not appear to be explained by seasonal factors, but rather presents as a structural decline.
NYC Open Data stats now show the following:
Revel NYC daily average trips peaked at 5,847 trips in October 2023
Revel’s rideshare trips have declined 24% from its peak to 4,430 trips per day in April 2024
Revel’s “unique dispatched vehicles” peaked at 509 in November 2023 and has fallen 13% to to 442, as of April 2024
We hope Revel sticks around, but we must continue to warn NYC TLC drivers, don’t bet on it. Make backup plans if your income is reliant on Revel’s rideshare business. Revel will likely focus, as we’ve long predicted, on its electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure business in NYC.
Drive Yellow. No lockouts. Lease daily or weekly.
Yellow is back.
Medallion taxi drivers make more money.
No mega-corporation trickery and nonsense.