Sure, they could use taxpayer money to fund already-VC-backed, privat,e for-profit companies. OR the city could:
1) build infrastructure to support alternative transport options (hello, bike lanes?);
2) enforce policies that increase parking turnover (meters or enforced 2 hour limits in lots, or force companies with private lots to allow public use during non-business hours);
or 3) just add some additional parking downtown.

What a waste of money and parking spaces. I have never seen either uber or lyft drivers picking passengers at the designated zones. Passengers still wait where they want and always blocking the flow of traffic on an already busy Castro Street. If the city needs to make money put in parking meters; this will keep vehicles moving and hopefully the city won't charge the exorbitant fees it charges restaurants downtown for parking.

Just to clarify: For tech companies like Uber and Lyft, their data is worth more to them than any city subsidies. When you use them, your travel information becomes their privately-owned data.

The city council once again is looking in the wrong direction. Obviously Uber and Lyft don't want to work with the city so just move on. It's over. Instead they should just work with the resources they already have. Just start putting more Police patrol on Castro St. and start writing tickets. Uber and Lyft drop off where their riders want because they don't want the bad review, guess what, if they driver starts losing money, they may learn to drop off in the designated areas.

and @a talking cat, while MV is in a housing crisis, can I stay at your home when your out of town, since you believe the council should "force companies with private lots to allow public use during non-business hours"

C'mon Council...make this work.

The end users (residents and others visiting your downtown) don't give a hoot about this data. You're being greedy expecting proprietary info...which you probably wouldn't know what to do with anyway.

Deliver a deal. And start delivering transportation solutions. Lots of talk. No action.

Anyone who drives around MV regularly knows exactly where the traffic is going to and from. It's not arcane magicks or anything... if you want to alleviate traffic density, start ticketing idling uber/lyft drivers or limit the number of ride share cars in town. They just loiter in parking spaces drive in circles downtown waiting for fares. The city government shouldn't be partnered with a business that got its start by blatantly operating an unlicensed (read: illegal) car service. Everyone in the Bay just loves a living wage and protective government regulations, unless it's for cab operators!

Why is the data a holdup for this deal? Is it really worth blocking everything to get ALL data for Mountain View?

"city officials asked to inspect general data, such as ... the start and end points of each trip"

WHAT?!?! Half of that data is likely to be someone's home. So the city wants records where it can tell someone that Just_Jay left home at 8:00pm to Castro, and he returned from Castro to home at 2:00am. Or worse, at 6am there was a trip from an apartment complex to Just_Jay's home. Why does the city want this? This is crazy.

Mountain View has cab companies that could be partnered with. There used be a lot of cabs waiting at the train station several years ago and I don't know how much they got decimated. Partnering with a TNC is like partnering with McDonald's which no city would partner with if they have locally owned and locally branded restaurants.