Uber, after announcing its intentions to get into public transit last April, is ready to launch in Denver. In partnership with the Regional Transportation District and transit data provider Moovit, residents of Denver will now be able to navigate public transportation within the Uber app.
For transit, Uber is serving two sets of customers: agencies and riders. For both sets, Uber is aiming to increase efficiency, enhance the experience and increase equity and accessibility, Uber Head of Transit David Reich told TechCrunch over the phone.
Initially, the ability to purchase tickets via the Uber app won’t be available, but it’s on the horizon. The in-app ticketing portion, in partnership with Masabi, will be available in the coming weeks, Reich said.
“You’ll have that full end-to-end experience,” Reich said. “We’re trying to take the stress out of traveling so you don’t have to worry about waiting in line [for a ticket] and missing the train.”
While Uber is only launching this in Denver today, Masabi handles ticketing for 30 transportation agencies worldwide, including Los Angeles’ Metrolink, New York’s MTA, London’s Thames Clippers and Boston’s MBTA. Uber also has relationships with a number of cities already, Reich said.
“We’ve been speaking with dozens of transit agencies around the world,” he said. “Denver was super innovative, very future-thinking and was a great city to partner with.”
Moving forward, Reich says to expect to see Transit launch in more cities in the coming months. This is all part of Uber’s new efforts, under the leadership of CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, to become a mulit-modal transportation provider. In April, when Khosrowshahi first announced Transit, he said, “Whether you’re using mass transit for your morning commute, taking an e-bike for a mid-day meeting, using Pool to take a ride home or renting a car for the weekend, we want Uber to be there with you and we want to partner with cities to be part of our solution moving forward.”