Jillian Anderson had just finished delivering a pizza when an idea came to her while sitting in her car: Atlanta needed a ride-sharing service exclusively for women.
When she moved to metro Atlanta in 2014, Anderson worked for the ride-sharing companies which hold a duopoly over the entire industry. Uber had arrived in 2012 and Lyft followed a year later. Anderson was trying to build a career in professional basketball and needed a flexible employment option.
After graduating from Albany State University, she had been recruited by the Harlem Globetrotters but her dream of becoming the team’s first female dunker ended when she fell ill before tryouts. Anderson played professionally for a season in Morocco, but by 2018 she was back in Atlanta, resuming her place in the gig economy.
Driving from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. worked best for her schedule and would eventually lead to her next career move.
“I would meet a lot of women who worked second- and third-shift jobs who said they were canceling rides until they got a woman (driver),” said Anderson, 29. Or they would just ask Anderson for her personal phone number to request rides.
Anderson had a degree in computer science and in 2019, she felt it was time to take the plunge into the field. She began developing a ride-sharing app that was dedicated to serving women.
Earlier this month, I took a short vacation during which I used Uber and Lyft about eight times. Each time, the driver was male. Each time, I thought about how vulnerable I was as a woman traveling with a minor. As always, I went through the calculations in my mind of what I would do if some horrible event took place.
According to a 2020 survey released by the National Council for Home Safety and Security, more than 50% of women riders reported some level of concern during rides with Uber ranging from an uncomfortable encounter (23%) to incidents that rose to the level of involving police (8%). Just over 30% of females reported concerns with Lyft rides, including 15% reporting an uncomfortable encounter and just under 3% reporting an assault or near assault.
In a December 2019 safety report, Uber revealed that more than 3,000 incidents of driver or rider sexual assault took place during Uber rides in 2018. In a similar report issued in 2021, Lyft disclosed that about 1,800 incidents of driver or rider sexual assault occurred during Lyft rides in 2019.
Uber and Lyft, which make up 99% of the ride-sharing market (69% for Uber and 30% for Lyft as of March 2020), responded to these concerns by introducing enhancements such as more frequent driver background checks and in-app emergency contacts, but neither company introduced the option for riders to request female drivers. Both companies have faced lawsuits from women who have experienced sexual assault while using the app.
Most women (79%) in the National Council for Home Safety and Security survey cited safety as a factor when deciding which rideshare app to use and 45% said they prefer female drivers.
“Women have been asking for this for years, but when you look at the top two ride-share companies out there now … they are dealing with battery and assault. It is men versus women or men versus men. If you remove that common denominator, most of those issues will go away,” Anderson said.
Initially, Anderson had wanted to become an IT director or cybersecurity analyst. Instead, she applied her IT skills to develop HERide, an Atlanta-based ride-sharing service for female drivers and female passengers that is currently in beta mode.
HERide users can create an account and prebook a ride in advance of their desired pickup time. An estimated fare is generated and the ride is confirmed if a driver is available. Anderson says she will not activate the on-demand feature until the roster of active drivers, currently numbering 55, reaches 200 to 250.
Though the concept of woman-only ride-sharing has gotten more attention in recent years, success in the market has been limited. Two early services developed in 2016, Massachusetts-based Chariot for Women and California-based See Jane Go, have ceased operations. Safr, a service initially intended to service women, now works with partner organizations rather than the general public.
The biggest hurdle to the survival of women-only ride-sharing companies is finding enough women to serve as drivers, according to a 2019 study from researchers at UCLA. Fewer women drivers means higher wait times for riders. Higher wait times would require lower fares to compensate but at the same time, a gender-based system would have to offer higher wages to recruit more women drivers. The model could be profitable by increasing the pool of women customers, the study found.
Anderson said current drivers for HERide have said they appreciate the compensation.
“We pay our drivers 80% of the fare,” said Anderson. “I know ride-share is a transient industry so I want to have people driving for us for years.”
She also knows from her own experience that when ride-sharing is the primary income, drivers will keep a relentless schedule — six days a week, around the clock — to make money. “I don’t want drivers to have to work all day to make $100,” she said.
Anderson is working on building partnerships with corporations and nightlife establishments to create consistent demand and develop the pool of customers needed to support the business.
It has been challenging for female-friendly ride-sharing services to find their place, but with 25% of the U.S. population ride-sharing at least once a month and with the global industry expected to reach a valuation of $220 billion (more than double what it is now) by 2025, there must be a market for something that so many women say they want.
Women can help create that demand by supporting female-friendly services.
Read more on the Real Life blog (www.ajc.com/opinion/real-life-blog/) and find Nedra on Facebook (www.facebook.com/AJCRealLifeColumn) and Twitter (@nrhoneajc) or email her at nedra.rhone@ajc.com.
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