Uber has announced the launch of a new program that allows women to choose female drivers and fellow riders, aiming to enhance safety and comfort for both female passengers and female drivers. The initiative, called Women’s Preferences, will begin pilot testing in the coming weeks in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Detroit. Women riders will see a new “Women Drivers” option in their app, giving them unprecedented control over their ride experience. The feature comes after extensive feedback from female users expressing a desire for gender-matching options.
Uber’s Vice President of Operations for the U.S. and Canada, Camiel Irving, emphasized that this development addresses direct customer feedback: “Women riders and drivers have told us they want the option to be matched with other women on trips. We’ve heard them — and now we’re introducing new ways to give them even more control over how they ride and drive.” The program also allows women to pre-book rides with female drivers for future trips.
How The Program Works And Its Benefits For Female Uber Riders
Female riders using the Uber app in pilot cities will notice a new “Women Drivers” option when requesting a ride. If wait times for female drivers are longer than desired, riders can opt for any available driver instead. Women can also adjust their app settings to default to female drivers for all future rides, increasing their chances of being matched with women drivers consistently.
The new feature creates valuable opportunities for Uber’s female drivers, who make up approximately one-fifth of the company’s driver workforce. Women drivers can toggle on the “Women Rider Preference” option in their app settings to receive ride requests exclusively from female passengers. This option works even during peak evening hours, when earning potential is highest, potentially increasing income while maintaining comfort levels.
Building On International Success
This isn’t Uber’s first venture into gender-matching services. The company initially launched Women Rider Preference in Saudi Arabia in 2019, shortly after women gained the right to drive in the country. According to CBS News, the feature has since expanded to 40 countries worldwide, facilitating over 100 million rides. Uber reports that developing a reliable system required careful design considerations, especially given that most drivers globally are men.
Uber isn’t alone in exploring gender-matching services. Lyft launched its Women+ Connect feature in 2023, which pairs women and nonbinary drivers with more women and nonbinary riders across all US cities where Lyft operates. Additionally, specialized services like HERide and Just Her Rideshare have explicitly emerged to connect female passengers with women drivers.
