Uber enlists MV Transportation drivers to pick up disabled passengers

Uber is adding drivers from a specialist company to its app in a bid to provide more wheelchair-accessible vehicles (WAV) to disabled passengers in the US. MV Transportation specialises in providing on-demand transportation to people with disabilities and older passengers. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi says there are not enough drivers on its platform who use WAVs. He believes the collaboration will allow riders in wheelchairs to be picked up within 15 minutes on average for trips in New York City, Bosto
November 23, 2018 Read time: 2 mins

8336 Uber is adding drivers from a specialist company to its app in a bid to provide more wheelchair-accessible vehicles (WAV) to disabled passengers in the US.

MV Transportation specialises in providing on-demand transportation to people with disabilities and older passengers.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi says there are not enough drivers on its platform who use WAVs.

He believes the collaboration will allow riders in wheelchairs to be picked up within 15 minutes on average for trips in New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, DC as well as Toronto in Canada.

“We’re aiming to see similar wait times for trips in San Francisco and Los Angeles over the next year, and together those eight cities account for half of Uber trips in North America,” Khosrowshahi adds.

MV CEO Kevin Jones says: “As the nature of transportation changes, we will work with Uber to ensure people with disabilities aren’t left behind.”

MV owns the WAVs, and its drivers are trained to secure wheelchairs inside the vehicles.

Uber intends to price WAV journeys the same as an UberX trip, which the company insists is its cheapest ride-share option outside of Uber Pool. The cost is determined by location, sometimes with surge pricing applied during peak times such as holidays or when there is bad weather.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • StreetLight Data maps future
    February 20, 2019
    Laura Schewel of StreetLight Data talks to Adam Hill about the importance of measuring what you do – and about how paint will remain perhaps the most important piece of technology in the city planners’ armoury for a decade to come Transportation is dangerous, responsible for 30% of global cargo emissions today. Some experts believe that it will be responsible for 80% by 2050. And that’s before you even get on to the safety question - just ask tech entrepreneur Laura Schewel. “Transportation is getting wo
    Read More
  • LA approves $400bn 30-year transport plan
    September 30, 2020
    City hopes multi-billion, long-term investment will ease traffic delays and reduce air pollution
    Read More
  • Manchester seeks smart but not selective transport solutions
    January 25, 2018
    Smarter transport relies on better communications both with travellers and between transport providers. Andrew Williams reports. Inrix’s prediction that the cost of traffic congestion will rise by 63% to £21bn per year by 2030 clearly illustrates that, in addition to the ongoing inconvenience and inefficiency, ongoing gridlock is a significant drain on the economy. It is against this backdrop that a Cisco-led consortium has launched CitySpire, a smart transport programme that uses location-based services a
    Read More
  • Manchester seeks smart but not selective transport solutions
    January 25, 2018
    Smarter transport relies on better communications both with travellers and between transport providers. Andrew Williams reports. Inrix’s prediction that the cost of traffic congestion will rise by 63% to £21bn per year by 2030 clearly illustrates that, in addition to the ongoing inconvenience and inefficiency, ongoing gridlock is a significant drain on the economy. It is against this backdrop that a Cisco-led consortium has launched CitySpire, a smart transport programme that uses location-based services a
    Read More

Highlighted Content