SHARED RIDES ARE BACK: Uber introduces revamped shared journey option starting in U.S.
Updated: Jun 27, 2022
Ride-hailing giants Uber have reintroduced SHARED RIDES after pausing them back in 2020 due to coronavirus restrictions.
Uber announced that UberX Share will arrive first in cities across the U.S., including New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego, Portland, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh.
The rideshare firm plans to expand UberX Share to more cities over the summer.
Since pausing shared rides in 2020, Uber have worked to revamp the experience. The new UberX Share will allow riders to:
Share a ride, get savings: riders will receive an upfront discount if they choose UberX Share, and get up to 20% off the total fare, if matched with a co-rider along the way.
Stay on schedule: To prevent pickups and drop-offs from causing unexpected delays, Uber will only match riders heading in the same direction. Uber have designed UberX Share so that riders arrive no more than 8 minutes later than an UberX ride.
Make a sustainable choice: By helping to match more people in fewer cars faster, Uber hope to help cut fuel use, vehicle-miles and emissions per passenger, and make transportation more affordable.
Andrew Macdonald, SVP of Mobility and Business Operations, said: "At Uber, we know affordability is important to making transportation more accessible for more people – especially in the current economic climate. Offering more affordable products isn’t just good for customers, it helps build out an ecosystem of affordable, multi-modal transportation – from shared rides, to micromobility, to public transit, which continues to be a powerful ally to Uber. Together we can chip away at our ultimate shared competitor: personal car ownership.
"Our pooling product has long been a rider favourite, from the spontaneous singalongs to meeting new friends and other fun chance encounters. We believe UberX Share, and the improvements we’ve made for drivers and riders, will make it better than ever."
