Thanks to technology, traveling around cities is now easier, more affordable and more accessible for all. People increasingly have more options to choose from when going from point A to point B that will best meet their transportation needs — all in the palm of their hand.

As a daily bike commuter and bike safety advocate, I know firsthand the challenges of urban bike commuting. Leveraging the power of our app, and partnerships with PeopleForBikes and local bicycle advocacy groups, we are launching a campaign to educate our riders and drivers on how to prevent “doorings.”

Timed with National Bike Month in the US and ahead of a busy bike season in Canada, we are unveiling a new feature piloting in select cities, and launching a video and educational efforts to raise awareness on the importance of bike safety.

Dutch Reach Awareness For Riders & Drivers:

Today we are rolling out education on the Dutch Reach to encourage riders and drivers across the US and Canada to look over their shoulder before exiting the vehicle to reduce the risk of “dooring” someone riding a bike or scooter.

The Dutch Reach, pioneered in the bike-friendly Netherlands, is a universal technique when exiting a vehicle that makes road travel safer for people biking.

In-App Bike Lane Alerts:

We are also piloting a new, in-app safety feature using publicly available mapping data to pinpoint where bike lanes and shared roads are in a city. With this Bike Lane Alert, the Uber rider will receive a push notification informing them that their upcoming drop-off is near a bike lane or along a bike route and remind them to look out for people on bikes before opening their door.

We are currently piloting the Bike Lane Alert feature in San Francisco, New York, Washington, D.C. and Toronto.

As the experts say, increasing awareness of safe behavior increases safety. Along with the in-app notifications to riders, we will also remind drivers it’s illegal to stop in a bike lane in most cities and encourage them to safely coordinate pick-ups and drop-offs away from bike lanes.

This pilot is just the start. We look forward to continue working with safety experts to increase awareness and build safety products for everyone – regardless of the mode of transportation.

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