Uber is introducing a major new feature that could change how you order rides.
There’s big news for fans of the ride-sharing service Uber, and it could affect how you order rides in the future.
Uber is introducing scheduled rides to the Seattle area, allowing riders to order a car as much as 30 days in advance, and the company is hoping to roll it out to all Uber cities eventually, according to an Uber statement.
Uber Chief Executive Travis Kalanick said as recently as September that the company wasn’t looking at offering scheduled rides, saying that he was more concerned with offering a service that is so reliable a scheduled ride isn’t necessary.
But apparently, officials at the company have had a change of heart due to customer demand for ride scheduling. In addition, Lyft — Uber’s chief competitor — started offering scheduled rides up to 24 hours in advance.
The service will only be available in Seattle to start, and only for those who have set up a business profile in the app. But the idea is to expand to all Seattle users of UberX, and then to other cities in the U.S. After that, the focus will be on expanding the offering to the UberPool and UberBlack services.
“Confirm the details of your upcoming trip and tap “Schedule uberX.” You can cancel at anytime before your ride is on the way,” the statement reads. “We’ll send you reminders both 24 hours and 30 minutes in advance of your pickup. You’ll be notified after your ride is on the way, as well as whether surge pricing applies. Since the option to schedule a ride is a top-requested feature from business travelers, we’re excited to give priority access to riders who have Business Profiles or are linked to their company’s Uber for Business account.”
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