BEVERLY HILLS—The popular ride share company, Uber, has decided to expand a 911 integration with its mobile app to cities, like Santa Monica and Beverly Hills, in an effort to keep people safe in the case of an emergency.
In its current form, up until now, the Uber mobile app has a feature that allows riders to report an emergency, where they push a button, and a police dispatcher is informed of the situation.
The dispatcher then calls the rider, who has to give their real-time location; the vehicle, make and model that they are riding in; and license plate number of that vehicle, just like any individual would have to do in the case of an emergency 911 call.
This new feature, through the integration, does not require the rider to give all of that information verbally. Instead, the mobile app automatically gives all of the necessary information to the police dispatcher, after the emergency has been reported.
According to Uber’s safety products lead, Sachin Kansal, the company believes this will be much better for the rider, if they are in possible danger. “Every second counts in an emergency, and we want to make sure our users get help quickly with accurate information if faced with an emergency situation.”
The emergency button in the Uber mobile app has been available since May of 2018, but could only be utilized in a handful of cities, one of which includes Los Angeles. Now, the company has expanded it to 60% of all Uber rides taking place in the entire country.
