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Uber now offers a Quiet Ride option to users in which you can ask your driver for silence if you pay an extra 20% to 40% premium on top of the UberX price. Today, Uber is launching the feature in 43 cities and smaller states in the U.S., as well as Ottawa.
Before ordering an Uber Comfort car, users will be able to request “quiet preferred,” “happy to chat” or leave the default of “no preference,” including the ability to set warmer or colder temperature settings. These new features first made their debut in May as part of Uber’s Black and SUV cars.
Uber will be able to charge customers more for a slightly better car and high-rated drivers which were previously included in its budget UberX tier
Uber drivers will be compensated as well if they are willing to skip the small talk or increase/decrease the air conditioning. An Uber spokesperson stated, “Uber Comfort should result in fares for drivers that are at least 20% higher than UberX (not including surge or promotions) for a trip with the same time and distance.”
There have been some critics that stated that the Quiet Ride button attacks the dignity of Uber’s contractors, however, Uber states that “The reception to Quiet Mode has been generally positive among drivers and riders.”
Uber Comfort is currently available in; San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, DC, Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Charleston, Charlotte, Dallas, Fresno, Hampton Roads, Houston, Honolulu, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Madison, Memphis, Milwaukee, Nashville, New Orleans, Omaha, Orange County, Palm Springs, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Raleigh-Durham, Richmond, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Tucson and Wichita, plus Ottawa, Canada, as well as the full states of Connecticut, New Jersey and Rhode Island.
You can read more here.
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