It's not just the jet set who get to stunt in their Uber choices. Shortly after Uber revealed its limited helicopter-hailing portion of the app, they threw a bone to the folks who want to halfway show out. People can now get their almost-Uber Black on with the newly unveiled Uber Comfort.
The new mode slots in between an UberX ride and Uber Black, with appropriate pricing. Uber says riders can expect to pay 20 to 40% more per ride and be rewarded with newer cars with more legroom and the ability to set temperatures in the car before pickup. In addition, riders will have the option to request that the driver not speak to them, a function called "quiet mode" that is also available in Uber Black.
The app notes that new cars that meet the standards required for Uber Comfort include the Toyota Camry, Dodge Durango, Audi SQ7, Chevy Tahoe, and Honda Odyssey. Drivers for Uber Comfort will need to have a minimum 4.85-star average and drive a car less than 5 years old.
The new feature comes amid a raft of bad press for the ride-hailing app. Back in May, the company's drivers initaited a nationwide strike to push for better treatment from the company, which avoids having to compensate its drivers as employees by classifying them as independent contractors. The strike was planned in the lead up to Uber's IPO, which was an absolute catastrophe. The stock plummeted by 11 percent on its first day, according to The Verge, which made the record books as the largest day-one dollar loss in the history of American IPOs.
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