Uber Brings New Women-Focused Safety Feature to Palm Springs

Women riders and drivers in Palm Springs now have more control over their Uber experience, thanks to a new feature launching today that allows them to choose to be matched with other women.

Uber is expanding its Women Preferences feature to 29 cities across the country, including Palm Springs. The company says about 75% of women riders have been asking for this option—and after successful pilots in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Detroit earlier this year, they're making it happen.

Here's how it works for riders: Women can request a ride specifically with women drivers on-demand, or book ahead using Uber's Reserve feature. They can also set an ongoing preference in their app settings that increases the likelihood of being matched with a woman driver, though it's not guaranteed. If the wait time gets too long, they can always switch to a standard ride.

For drivers, the feature means more flexibility. Women drivers can toggle on a "Women Rider Preference" in their settings to receive trips primarily from women riders—including during busy evening hours. They can turn it off anytime they want to accept rides from all passengers.

The feature is available now in the Uber and Uber Driver apps for Palm Springs users.