Before COVID (B.C. for short), both Uber and Lyft offered shared rides as a cheaper option. Uber’s was called Uber Pool and Lyft offered Lyft Line. They were sort of like carpools, except most, if not all of the passengers entered and exited at different places (in other words, drivers could pick up and drop off additional passengers along any given route). But since you didn’t have the luxury of a car all to yourself, and sometimes had small detours and extra stops during your ride, it was cheaper (it also took longer).
Uber Pool and Lyft Line both stopped in March 2020 as a response to the then quickly-spreading and sometimes deadly coronavirus.
Three months later, in June, 2020, science had a better handle on the virus and we knew that it primarily spread through the respiratory system. That’s when Uber said all drivers and passengers must wear masks for rides. Lyft made similar rules. Compliance was spotty. But those were technically the rules, and of course, under the circumstances, group ride sharing still wasn’t allowed.
By 2022, Omicron, a more contagious but generally less deadly variant of the virus was the one people were catching nearly all of the time. Mask use was no longer mandatory for either ride sharing company as of April, 2022.
And now, finally, carpooling ride shares are back.
Uber announced this past Tuesday that they were returning shared rides through UberX Share (they changed the name from Uber Pool) in select U.S. markets. Uber’s shared rides are again available in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Phoenix, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh. More cities are scheduled to join this summer.
Lyft was actually ahead of the game – they brought shared rides back to Philadelphia, Miami, San Francisco, San Jose, Denver, Las Vegas and Atlanta in May.
Both companies have made some changes to their shared rides – some fairly large, some barely noticeable:
Uber
- Masks are optional but recommended – The CDC no longer requires riders and drivers to wear masks. However, Uber recommend you wear a mask when using their service.
- Request one seat only – You can request one seat only with UberX Share. If you’re riding with a friend or a group of friends, consider requesting UberX or UberXL. For now, you may share the ride with one other co-rider at a time.
- Front seat policy – You will no longer be required to sit in the back seat. However, to give your driver some space, they ask that you use the front seat only if you need it.
Lyft
- Upon rollout, Shared rides will have no more than two passengers in the ride. Fewer stops mean more direct routes, so riders can get to where they are going more quickly and efficiently.
- Shared rides are currently designed for a maximum of 2 passengers and you can now sit in the front seat if both you and your driver are comfortable with it.
- Until further notice, each rider will pay Lyft’s $0.55 fuel surcharge–all of which goes directly to drivers.
Before the pandemic, shared options generally saved passengers about 20% off rides. With the increased prices and surcharges both Lyft and Uber have right now, any percentage off could go a long way.
Feature Image (cropped): www.quotecatalog.com via flickr (license: CC by 2.0)
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