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Uber will soon introduce a new ride-hailing feature in the United States that allows women to request female drivers, and gives women drivers the option to only accept trip requests from women.

The feature, called Women Preferences could help address long-standing safety concerns, as ride-sharing services have grappled with issues including assault.

Uber said it was responding to feedback from women riders and drivers, offering them “more choice, more confidence, and more flexibility”.

Here’s what to know about the new feature.

Why is Uber rolling out a women-only service?

Uber said women riders and drivers across the US have been saying they “want the option to be matched with other women on trips”.

Ride-hailing platforms including Uber have long faced pressure to improve safety for both drivers and riders.

Uber disclosed thousands of reports of sexual assault during US rides between 2017 and 2022. Uber and Lyft began sharing information in 2021 on drivers they had deactivated in an effort to improve rider safety.

Uber previously rolled out a feature that enables riders and drivers to record audio on trips. These recordings are encrypted and can be accessed by Uber only when an incident is reported.

Where will the rides be available?

Los Angeles, San Francisco and Detroit are the pilot cities for the new feature, where it will be rolled out “in the next few weeks”, the company said.

How can I use the new feature?

The new feature lets riders request a female driver when hailing a ride, with the option to switch to all drivers if waiting times are too long or if a female driver is unavailable.

They can also prebook a ride with a female driver and change their app settings to indicate they would always prefer to be matched with a female driver.

Women drivers will be able to switch their app settings to request only female passengers - including during peak evening hours - and can turn off the feature at any time to accept all ride requests, Uber said.

Are there other women-only rideshare apps?

There are several smaller rideshare companies that are only for women, such as HERide in Atlanta and Athens, Georgia, and North Carolina-based Just Her Rideshare, which says it has primarily female riders and drivers.

Lyft launched a similar feature called Women+ Connect in 2023. Uber has already rolled out the “Women Preferences” feature in dozens of countries, starting with Saudi Arabia in 2019.

“Most drivers are men, so we’ve worked to ensure this feature was truly useable in different places around the world,” Uber said in a news release.