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Uber launches option for female riders to choose women drivers
Uber is rolling out a new feature nationwide that allows female riders to select female drivers, giving them greater control and a sense of safety when using the app.
Uber announced its "Women Drivers" feature, allowing passengers to select a preference for female Uber drivers.
The option helps women riders and drivers who prefer to take trips with other women, Uber said.
What we know:
On Monday, March 9, Uber launched a feature on Monday to allow both women riders and drivers across the U.S. to be matched with other women for trips.
The feature expands on a pilot program aimed at addressing concerns about the safety of its platform. The pilot – which started in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Detroit in 2025 – is now expanding nationwide.
How does Uber's ‘Women Drivers’ option work?
Big picture view:
When requesting or reserving a trip, passengers can select "Women Drivers" or set this option as a preference, by toggling this preference in the app setting. The preference can be turned off at any time.
For riders, we’ll use technology to try to determine their gender based on their first name. For drivers, we’ll use the gender information on their government-issued identification, Uber said.
Drivers can update their gender in the settings of Uber’s Driver app by going to Menu > Settings > Manage Uber account > Personal Info > Gender.
This also applies to teen accounts, Uber said.
What they're saying:
"When women riders and drivers told us they wanted more control over how they ride and earn, we listened," Uber said in the post. "That feedback led to Women Preferences, features designed to give women the choice to ride with other women. Since our first pilots last summer, we’ve heard just how much that choice matters—from feeling more comfortable in the back seat to more confident behind the wheel."
Uber, based in San Francisco, says about one-fifth of its drivers in the U.S. are women, though the ratio varies by city.
The backstory:
Uber said the new feature comes in response to real feedback.
"Women asked for more choice — and we built it with Women Preferences," said Brooke Anderson, Uber’s Head of Product Communications. "This feature exists because women told us it should, and we are proud to expand Women Preferences nationwide and bring more flexibility and control to millions more women."
A women riders preference was launched in Saudi Arabia in 2019, allowing women drivers to set a preference to be connected with women riders.
Will this feature increase wait times?
Despite the preference setting, availability of female drivers is not always guaranteed.
Riders using Women Preferences may experience longer wait times if the driver is further away, Uber said.
Feature rolled out despite lawsuit
The new feature is being rolled out nationwide despite an ongoing class action lawsuit against the policy in California, filed by Uber drivers who argue that it discriminates against men. Rival ride-hailing company Lyft is facing a discrimination lawsuit over a similar offering that it introduced nationwide in 2024.
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Two California Uber drivers filed a class-action lawsuit against Uber in November, arguing that by potentially giving female drivers access to a wider pool of passengers, the new feature violates California’s Unruh Act, which prohibits sex discrimination by business enterprises. The lawsuit also argues that Uber’s policy "reinforces the gender stereotype that men are more dangerous than women."
Uber filed a motion to compel arbitration in the case, citing an agreement the plaintiffs signed when joining the app as drivers. In the motion, Uber disputed that its new feature violates the Unruh Act, saying it "serves a strong and recognized public policy interest in enhancing safety."
Both Uber and Lyft have faced thousands of reports of sexual assaults over the years from both passengers and drivers.
In February, a federal jury found Uber to be legally responsible in a 2023 case of sexual assault and the company was ordered to pay $8.5 million to an Arizona woman who said she was raped by one of its drivers.
The Source: This story was reported from Los Angeles and information from Uber's website. The Associated Press contributed.