New safety feature introduced to lift service in South Africa
Stacey shares her thoughts on this safety addition...
Safety has been a huge concern for lift services in South Africa as the country returns to a sense of normalcy.
After workshopping the idea to record audio during a lift service trip, Uber has just rolled this out in South Africa.
Here is insight shared by Uber about this much anticipated feature:
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In September this year, Uber launched a pilot programme in South Africa and now all South African users have access should anything go wrong.
In the event that something went wrong (or just unpleasantly), that recording could be uploaded to Uber for review and action.
This feature allows both parties to record the trip should they feel uneasy, unsafe, or just extra cautious.
LISTEN: "It's distressing, it's disgusting, and it's scary!" - Stacey Norman
Avid uber user, Stacey Norman, shares some interesting insight into this latest addition. Listen below:
Uber’s senior safety operations manager for sub-Saharan Africa, Collen Mphabantshi, said: “Drivers have been asking for this feature based on their feedback from roundtable sessions and we are excited to be rolling out this feature nationally. We believe it will offer riders and drivers the peace of mind they need to travel with ease, as well as improve conduct on the app.”
STUFF reports: 'It’s relatively easy to start the recording process. It’s either chosen at the beginning of a ride, if you’re the better-safe-than-sorry sort or by tapping a shield in the app during the trip. Neither the driver nor the passenger is notified when the other starts recording the trip.'
The audio file cannot be accessed by anyone other than Uber. Even then, it only becomes available after upload.
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