Yellow Cab Cooperative Inc., San Francisco’s largest taxi company, filed for bankruptcy protection Friday, the latest in string of traditional taxi companies to turn to chapter 11 amid the rapid rise of ride-hailing rivals like Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc., the Wall Street Journal reported today. Pamela Martinez, the co-op’s president, said in court papers that her company faced a host of challenges, including a high number of accidents-related claims and liabilities, a steep decline in ridership and competition from newer app-based ride-sharing services, namely Uber and Lyft, which have also increasingly poached Yellow Cab drivers. In June, a jury awarded $8.1 million to a woman who was partially paralyzed in a Yellow Cab accident, court paper show, and the company said it faces some 150 open claims valued as high as $10 million.
