Uber launches women-only option across the US | Technology
Uber launches women-only option across the US | Technology
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/mar/09/uber-women-only-option
Publish Date: 2026-03-09 18:45:00
Source Domain: www.theguardian.com
Uber launched a feature on Monday to allow both female riders and drivers across the US to be matched with other women for trips, expanding a pilot program aimed at addressing concerns about the safety of its ride-hailing platform.
The new feature is being rolled out nationwide despite an ongoing class action lawsuit against the policy in California, filed by Uber drivers who argue that it is discriminatory against men. Rival ride-hailing company Lyft is also facing a discrimination lawsuit over a similar offering that it introduced nationwide in 2024.
The feature, announced in a blog post, allows women to request a female driver through an option on the app called “women drivers”. Passengers can opt for another ride if the wait for a woman is too long, and they can also reserve a trip with a female driver in advance. A third option allows female users to set a preference for a female driver in their app settings, which would increase the chances of being matched with a woman, though it would not guarantee it. Uber is also allowing its teen account users to request female drivers.
Uber’s female drivers can set the app’s preferences to request trips with female riders, and they can turn off that preference at anytime.
Uber, based in San Francisco, says about one-fifth of its drivers in the US are women, thought the ratio varies by city.
Two California Uber drivers filed a class-action lawsuit against Uber in November, arguing that its women preferences feature violates California’s Unruh Act, which prohibits sex discrimination by business enterprises. The lawsuit charges that the feature gives its minority female drivers access to the entire pool of passengers, while leaving its majority male drivers to compete for a smaller pool of passengers. The lawsuit also argues that Uber’s policy “reinforces the gender stereotype that men are more dangerous than women”.
Uber filed a motion to compel arbitration in the case, citing an agreement the plaintiffs…
