Uber Canada Shares Safety Tips for Traveling Around Campus

As the volume of trips to and from post-secondary campuses across Canada is doubling, Uber is sharing some back-to-school trends highlighting how students are relying on ridesharing to get around on and off campus.

Uber

“Now that classes are back in full swing, it’s a great time to remind students how to use Uber app features to stay safe when traveling,” notes Uber. According to the company:

  • Rideshare trips to and from campuses in Windsor and Gatineau increased by four times between August and September, more than any other university towns in the country.
  • In Lethbridge, Kingston, London, Halifax, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ottawa and Hamilton, rides to and from campuses increased by three times when classes began.

The ridesharing giant is therefore encouraging students to get familiar with Uber’s safety features, study them, and review them regularly.

“Uber has pioneered key safety features, such as our Emergency Button. With just one tap, you can share your trip with a loved one or connect to 911,” said Michael van Hemmen, General Manager for Uber Rides Canada. “We’re providing students with important information on Uber’s safety features with a goal to ensure that students and riders stay as safe as possible on and off campus.”

Uber requires all drivers to undergo a criminal and motor vehicle background check before they can begin using the app, in addition to the following safety features.

  • Check Your Ride: Before getting into the car, remember to always match the license plate number and car make and model with what’s shown in the app, and make sure your driver matches their in-app photo.
  • Verify Your Ride: Turn this feature on to receive a unique PIN for every ride, then share that PIN with your driver to help make sure that you’re in the right vehicle. This feature is especially useful in locations where there are a lot of people waiting for rides.
  • Share My Trip: Open the Safety Toolkit and tap Share My Trip to share your location and ETA as well as your driver’s name, photo, and license plate number with a friend or family member so they can see your trip status in real time.
  • In-app Emergency Button: In the event of an emergency, 911 assistance is just a few taps away. Open the Safety Toolkit, select Emergency assistance, and swipe to call 911. The app displays your location and trip details so you can quickly share them with the 911 dispatcher.
  • RideCheck: Using sensors and GPS data, RideCheck can help detect if a trip has an unexpected long stop. If so, we’ll check on you and offer resources to get help.
  • GPS tracking: Make sure all trips are requested through the Uber platform. All trips are tracked from start to finish, so there’s a record of your trip if something happens.
  • 2-way ratings: Your feedback matters. Low-rated trips are logged, and users may be removed to protect the Uber community.
  • 24/7 incident support: Uber has a dedicated safety team available 24-7 to investigate safety incidents reported to Uber.

For more information on how these safety features work, check out the following video.

YouTube video

P.S. - Like our news? Support the site with a coffee/beer. Or shop with our Amazon link. We use affiliate links when possible--thank you for supporting independent media.