How to Use Uber Driver App for Uber Eats
As of this morning—if you live in Denver—your Uber app does a whole lot more than just hail you a ride, Traveler has exclusively learned. You can now use it to see just about every way you can get to your destination, including public transit. That's carpools, regular Uber rides, black cars, Jump electric bikes, buses, and the light rail, if you were keeping tabs.
Users in the Mile High City who update their apps will now get "Transit" in addition to the other available options when planning a trip, listed with an ETA for their destination, so they can choose the fastest (and most economical) form of transport. It'll also give users walking directions to the bus or light rail stop, show departure times for the next train or bus, and display which stop to get off on. And soon—several weeks from now, Uber told us—residents and travelers can book and display Regional Transportation District (or RTD, Denver's public transport agency) tickets straight from the Uber app. "We're really trying to make it as easy as possible for the rider. You won't have to wait in line at the turnstiles and you won't have to miss that train because you couldn't get your ticket in time. You'll just be able to get on it and go," says David Reich, Uber's head of transit.
Before you think Denver is alone in this new feature, know that the team plans to roll it out to as many of its 600 cities as it can, thanks to partnerships with Moovit, an app that offers real-time bus, subway, and other transit data in hundreds of cities, and Masabi, a ticketing partner that will make booking and scanning Uber-transit tickets possible. "Denver has buses, trains, and light rail—but in other places where subways are a thing, or ferries are a thing, we're going to be able to integrate with any mode of public transportation," Reich says.
In all, the team has been working on creating the "Transit" feature since last April, when Uber first announced its partnership with Masabi. From there, Reich's team has been working with focus groups and developers to create this addition to the app. "We talked to hundreds of transit riders—ones that use Uber and ones that don't—and what we really found was that they want to see, upfront: How long is it going to take me where I need to go? How much is it going to cost me? You just need to let them know what's really their best option," Reich says. "And that's what so exciting for Uber riders, we're actually telling them, 'You know what, in this situation, transit is your best option.'"
Masabi was actually a central reason why Denver is Uber's public transit guinea pig. RTD has been offering mobile tickets on its app through Masabi since late 2017, which meant easy integration into Uber's new system and the opportunity to launch booking sooner than in other cities without an existing partnership. Plus, Reich says, "Denver has one of the more innovative transit agencies out there. They're really thinking about what the future can look like, and how to fast-forward to get there."
This isn't Uber's first time dabbling in public transportation. It already offers case-by-case services to transportation agencies around the world, like subsidized rides for people with disabilities in Boston who can't take regular bus or subway options, and discounted late-night rides home from bus stations in Canberra, Australia. In fact, it isn't even the first ride-hailing company to offer public transit on its app. As is the case in the ever-present, one-upping battle between Lyft and Uber, Lyft launched public transit options in Santa Monica in September of last year, rolling it out later in Los Angeles, D.C., Chicago, and Seattle—but doesn't offer any booking options. (Lyft has not announced plans of offering booking at this time.)
Your move, Lyft.
How to Use Uber Driver App for Uber Eats
Source: https://www.cntraveler.com/story/uber-just-added-public-transit-to-its-app