Uber has announced the expansion of its Women Preferences feature to 26 additional U.S. cities, along with the introduction of an option for Teen accounts. This development allows female riders and drivers to select their travel companions.
According to Uber, the Women Preferences feature enables women and nonbinary riders to be matched with women drivers, while women drivers can prioritize trips from women riders. The initiative began with pilots in cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Detroit, Denver, and Phoenix. After receiving positive feedback that indicated increased comfort and confidence among users, Uber is extending this feature to more than two dozen U.S. cities and making it available for eligible teen family accounts for the first time.
Uber’s safety data supports its investment in features like Women Preferences. The company reports that serious safety incidents are extremely rare, with over 99.9% of trips concluding without issues. However, Uber also publishes statistics on sexual and physical assaults to maintain transparency. A recent update highlighted a roughly forty percent decrease in reports of serious sexual assault related to the platform over several years, attributed to tools such as in-app emergency buttons, RideCheck, audio-recording pilots, and live trip-sharing. The Women Preferences feature is part of this safety toolkit, offering women control over their riding companions while allowing men to continue requesting and accepting trips as usual.
In Colorado and other states, Uber has aligned these product changes with public-safety partnerships that encourage choosing rides over impaired driving. Campaigns by the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) under “The Heat Is On” banner have collaborated with Uber to provide ride credits—such as statewide vouchers worth approximately fifteen dollars during holiday crackdowns—while law enforcement conducts high-visibility DUI patrols. These initiatives demonstrate how Uber works alongside Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and state agencies to pair enforcement with discounted rides for safe transportation options.
Uber Technologies, Inc., based in San Francisco, operates the world’s largest ridesharing platform connecting riders and drivers globally across numerous countries and cities. Beyond ride-hailing services, it offers food delivery through Uber Eats, package delivery, and freight services. Its marketplace relies on independent drivers who choose their work schedules—a flexibility often cited by conservatives as an example of gig-economy opportunities. By incorporating features like Women Preferences, emergency tools, and teen accounts, Uber aims to showcase how private innovation can align consumer choice with data-driven safety measures.
