Uber rolls out new safety feature
Uber's latest safety feature, which allows drivers and riders to record audio during an uncomfortable trip, has been rolled out across SA after completing a pilot phase in Gauteng.
A Business Insider report notes that ride-hailing app Uber began testing an audio recording feature in Johannesburg and Pretoria in September.
The feature, which was first launched in Latin America and the US, forms part of Uber's push for more safety mechanisms at the request of both drivers and riders.
More than 3 400 drivers and 80 000 riders in Gauteng set up the audio recording feature during its pilot phase. This allowed Uber to ‘efficiently carry out and conclude more in-depth and fair evidence-based outcomes in an investigation.’
Following the three-month Gauteng trial, this feature was rolled out to the Uber app across SA on 1 December.
‘Drivers have been asking for this feature based on their feedback from roundtable sessions, and we are excited to be rolling out this feature nationally,’ said Collen Mphabantshi, senior operations manager for safety at Uber Sub-Saharan Africa, last week.
‘We believe it will offer riders and drivers the peace of mind they need to travel with ease, as well as improve conduct on the app.’
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