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San Francisco warns Uber, Lyft passengers not to get into the wrong ride-share car
The city of San Francisco kicked off a public campaign on Tuesday to increase awareness around recent safety concerns involving passengers getting into the wrong Uber or Lyft vehicle.
A number of recent assaults contributed to the need for a focused campaign, as San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón emphasized in a statement.
“These services generally operate effectively, but they can be manipulated to attract unsuspecting victims,” he said. “Together, we can take steps to create a safer experience for a service so many rely on.”
MORE: Uber plans to make ride-sharing less than half of its business within 10 years
The campaign urges ride-sharers to double check all the requisite information before getting in a vehicle, including taking special care to confirm the license plate number, make, and model listed on the app, confirm the driver’s name before giving your own, and check to make sure the driver’s appearance matches their picture. It also suggests you share your location and destination with family, friends, or someone else you trust.
Ride-sharing giant Uber is working hand-in-hand on the campaign, and taking steps to increase passenger safety, even as the company announced that less of its focus will be on ride-sharing as it moves into new transportation services, complete with a brand new logo.
“The safety features that are built into the Uber app…only work if a rider is in the car that is assigned to them through the app,” a company spokesperson said in a statement to Mashable. “If someone is in the wrong car, they won’t know who their driver is and neither will Uber.”
Though the city of San Francisco has quarreled with Uber and other ride-sharing services in the past over drivers’ rights and more, it appears those differences have been put aside in the name of user safety.
The city of San Francisco kicked off a public campaign on Tuesday to increase awareness around recent safety concerns involving passengers getting into the wrong Uber or Lyft vehicle.
A number of recent assaults contributed to the need for a focused campaign, as San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón emphasized in a statement.
“These services generally operate effectively, but they can be manipulated to attract unsuspecting victims,” he said. “Together, we can take steps to create a safer experience for a service so many rely on.”
MORE: Uber plans to make ride-sharing less than half of its business within 10 years
The campaign urges ride-sharers to double check all the requisite information before getting in a vehicle, including taking special care to confirm the license plate number, make, and model listed on the app, confirm the driver’s name before giving your own, and check to make sure the driver’s appearance matches their picture. It also suggests you share your location and destination with family, friends, or someone else you trust.
Ride-sharing giant Uber is working hand-in-hand on the campaign, and taking steps to increase passenger safety, even as the company announced that less of its focus will be on ride-sharing as it moves into new transportation services, complete with a brand new logo.
“The safety features that are built into the Uber app…only work if a rider is in the car that is assigned to them through the app,” a company spokesperson said in a statement to Mashable. “If someone is in the wrong car, they won’t know who their driver is and neither will Uber.”
Though the city of San Francisco has quarreled with Uber and other ride-sharing services in the past over drivers’ rights and more, it appears those differences have been put aside in the name of user safety.
