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Uber Using Smartphone Gyrometer Data To Monitor Speeding Drivers

In addition, when navigating with Waze, drivers will soon be able to press a “Return to Lyft” button that immediately brings up the Lyft app. This is generally a great opportunity to voice your concerns but when opinions are strong it’s important the company balances the drivers’ feedback as well in order to be fair to every party.

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Uber announced today that it will monitor some of its drivers’ behavior for things like excessive speeding or distracted driving. It might be that a driver is unhappy about an unruly rider.

Uber said the new scheme is mainly for the benefit of its drivers; if they are the subject of a bad review but the data proves that the customer’s feedback was inaccurate, the company will make sure that the driver’s rating isn’t affected.

“Technology can help get to the truth”, writes Uber in a post on its blog, saying that this will allow it to know if the driver is checking their phone too much during the ride or if they’ve been speeding too much. The GPS can provide the overall speed of the auto while the gyroscope can measure changes such as excessive braking. Or a rider is anxious that her driver was going too fast. Mostly it’s about talking to both sides.

Since Uber users can now contact the company and complain about issues with vehicles or drivers, this new test enables the company to obtain data from the smartphone’s gyrometer, and double check these. For drivers, it means that unwarranted complaints won’t ding their rating, and for passengers, it might make them more comfortable using Uber more often. “For drivers who go much faster on that stretch, we can ask them to curb their enthusiasm”.

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Uber classifies its drivers as independent contractors, not employees, and it has maintained that it is a technology platform, rather than a transportation company.

Uber Has An Eye On Drivers Who Speed Or Brake Too Hard