Scientific study shows that drivers for the popular ridesharing applications Uber and Lyft may be planning their trips around discrimination against women and people of color.
Over the span of two years, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Stanford, and the University of Washington, looked at nearly 1,500 total rides in Seattle and Boston. To gather data, researchers marked down four distinct times of the Uber and Lyft processes:
- When the ride was requested
- When the ride was accepted by the driver
- When they were picked up
- when they arrived at their destination
In Seattle, when compared to the results for white people, it took up to 28% longer for requests by riders of color to be accepted by both Uber and Lyft drivers, Black Enterprise reports. More than that, riders with “black-sounding names” in Boston experienced a cancellation rate twice as high as those with “white-sounding names,” specifically when the passenger was male and requesting a ride in a “low-density area.”
“We found that African-American travelers in Seattle experienced statistically significantly longer delay waiting for a trip request through UberX or Lyft to be accepted,” the researchers wrote. UberX is Uber’s baseline service.
“We theorize that at least some drivers for both UberX and Lyft discriminate on the basis of the perceived race of the traveler,” they added.
Generally, the study found women were often driven further than men, meaning that Uber and Lyft drivers, upon accepting the fare and picking up a woman, are less apt to take the shortest possible route to the destination, Money reports. Considering this alongside reports from female researchers that drivers were extra talkative with them, the researchers suggest that female riders are exposed to profiteering and flirting.
While both Uber and Lyft have made significant progress in providing affordable transportation options for all, including several areas where taxis refuse to go, discrimination of any kind is unacceptable.
As it is, Uber and Lyft drivers share the following requirements: they must be older than 21, have proper driving experience; they must have an in-state driver’s license; they must have an in-state vehicle with proper insurance; and they must be able to pass a background check.
Progress isn’t guaranteed by this current process, not when it comes to discrimination. What Uber and Lyft must strive for is education. Click below to request that, in addition to the current driver application process, Uber and Lyft require of its drivers the completion of a company generated and led course on proper driver conduct.
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