Did you ever have the experience where you selected a location on your smartphone for a pickup point and then your Uber/Grab car arrives at the opposite side of the road? I had that experience once, I called the driver to ask him where he was. He couldn’t even explain to me where he was but I spotted his car across a busy street in KL. I crossed over while waiting for the light to change and the driver just drove off and cancelled the ride. As much as how great technology is, the bad side of human behaviour is starting to show.
This is the same as well across the world where Uber and Lyft cars double park whilst waiting for their passengers. The Mayor of San Francisco tweeted out that he would be piloting a program with both Uber and Lyft to have dedicated pickup and drop off zones in order to prevent congestions. Sounds pretty much like a bus stop if you asked me.
Making #SF streets safer with designated pick up and drops off spots is the goal behind our pilot program with @Uber and @lyft. pic.twitter.com/HjKp0AstgS
— Mayor Ed Lee (@mayoredlee) November 8, 2017
“Lyft looks forward to partnering with the Mayor’s office to see how we can most effectively and efficiently use curb space in the city. We have been participating in meetings with the pilot’s stakeholder group since May and appreciate the Mayor’s leadership on this important issue,” said a Lyft spokeswoman to CNet.
The idea is one to tackle congestion as well as cars blocking bicycle lanes as the service gets more and more popular in large cities. Definitely having a dedicated area makes it a lot easier for customers to know that their drivers would arrive at the intended spot.
