It’s been a wild year for Uber thanks to its rollout of new partnerships, features, and services.
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You might have learned that Uber recently partnered with Waymo, a rideshare that specializes in self-driving robotaxis. Already, you can hail Waymo’s robotaxis using an Uber app in Austin and Atlanta—and the partnership will only expand in 2026.
But there are two other updates you should have in mind. The first relates to security for female rideshare app users. The other revolves around ski season and lugging that hefty equipment from slope to slope.
Here’s what you need to know.
Uber adds Women’s Preferences
We’ve all heard tales of Uber drivers acting a little creepy. Unfortunately, there are more than a few cases in which Uber drivers have left creepy territory and headed straight into criminality. One report found that there were over 400,000 reports of misconduct and assault during Uber rides from 2017 – 2022. That’s around 182 incidents per day.
One spokesperson from the rideshare company told Travel + Leisure, “In fact, about 75 percent of women riders say they support an option to match with women drivers—and we’re listening.”
Hence, the launch of a new feature that lets women riders pair with women drivers. They can look for immediate pick-up or schedule a ride in the future.
The feature is now live in Detroit, Denver, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Francisco, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Sacramento, and 22 other cities across the country. If you don’t use Uber, you can book women-driver rides with Lyft, which also has a ‘Ride for women, by women’ program.
Uber also adds ski-friendly pickups
Uber has also rolled out a unique new setup for ski-friendly rides—one that includes space for your gear and even select integrations with certain ski resorts. The goal is to make it easy to reliably book rides that will fit your ski crew, along with all their ski gear—from heavy coats to ski shoes to helmets.
Riders can choose between an UberXL or an UberXXL, which makes space for two skiers and four skiers, respectively.
Best of all, this Uber feature isn’t exclusive to the US, like the women-driver program. It launched yesterday, November 13th in select areas in the US, Canada, France, and Switzerland.
The rideshare app has also partnered with Vail Resorts, giving members access to over 90 mountains around the Vail Resorts network. Uber riders who buy an Epic Pass via the Uber App also get 20 percent off certain lodging, retail, and dining experiences with Vail Resorts. Consider this your sign to finally join the Epic Pass network.
