ROCK HILL, S.C. (FOX 46 CHARLOTTE) — Uber has released a new feature to help riders make sure they’re getting into the right car.
This comes weeks after a University of South Carolina student was killed after she got into a car police say she had mistaken for her Uber. With the help of USC, Uber launched their campus safety initiative on Thursday.
“It’s is very smart. It shows that they all care about what’s going on. They care about the community. I think for the future it will save a lot of lives,” Winthrop student Caitlin Dreher said.
Now, once your driver has arrived, the app will tell you to ‘check your ride, every time,’ while asking the user three things: To check the license plate, car details and matching your driver’s photo.
“I like that they are taking more measures and reacting to recent events that have happened,” said Lindsay Herringshaw.
It’s a national effort to help students learn how to avoid fake rideshare drivers following the death of Samantha Josephson.
“I think they should’ve seen this coming,” Herringshaw said. “They pride themselves on being safe but I feel like they didn’t take the initiative to check off all this stuff because people do drink and go out and kind of forget to do certain things.”
While most Winthrop students welcome the added safety features, some hope this is only the beginning.
“Give the people an option that they are riding with people they are comfortable with. Whether it’s a woman with a woman driver or a man in the car with a woman driver in all aspects,” Dyamond Douglas said.
