UberX Share, is now accessible in nine cities, including New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, the updated rideshare carpool option. UberX Share will reportedly be introduced in more cities this summer, according to the business. The firm said that following a more than two-year absence due to the epidemic, Uber is resuming shared rides in a few significant US cities on Tuesday.
In March 2020, Uber (UBER) discontinued Uber Pool, its previous version of the shared-ride service, at the advice of health regulators who wanted to stop the spread of Covid-19 through social isolation. Following a suspension of the option in 2020, Lyft reintroduced a comparable service in July 2021.
Shared rides have been promoted widely for years by both Uber, and Lyft (LYFT) have promoted shared rides widely for years, hoping that they will displace other forms of transportation by making ride-hailing more affordable and convenient. But unfortunately, the corporations had to put their plans on hold due to the pandemic.
According to a statement released by Uber’s SVP of Mobility and Business Operations on Tuesday, UberX Share “reimagines the future of shared rides with increased efficiency and safety top-of-mind.” In addition, he added, riders can anticipate getting “an upfront discount and up to 20% off the total ticket, if paired with a co-rider along the route.”
Uber is reportedly taking action to temporarily limit the number of passengers in a carpool in response to pandemic fears. Customers who use UberX Share can presently only request one seat, and only one additional passenger will be present at any given moment, according to the company’s blog post. In addition, the business said that masks are not required everywhere but are nevertheless advised, except in those places.
Especially given the current economic context, Uber also emphasized the need to increase accessibility and affordability of transportation. Worries about a severe economic downturn have recently plagued the industry. In addition, for all drivers, including those employed in the ride-hailing sector, the sky-high cost of gas has been a burden. Due to this, Uber and Lyft declared they would temporarily raise their ride prices to cover fuel costs.
The company is “recession resistant,” according to Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, who made this statement in an interview at the Bloomberg Technology Summit earlier this month. His remarks, however, come just one month after the Wall Street Journal reported that Uber planned to reduce costs as investor optimism waned.
