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Uber, Lyft, Zipcar Offer Free Or Discounted Rides To Polls On Election Day (consumerist.com) 65

Posted by BeauHD from the point-A-to-point-B dept.
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Consumerist: Lyft, Uber, Zipcar, and Maven have unveiled a variety of discounts and promotions aimed at enabling voters to get to the polls on Tuesday. The ride-hailing service [Uber] has teamed up with Google to create an in-app feature that aims to assist voters in locating their poling place and then getting there. "Given the important decision people around the country will make on November 8th, we wanted to make getting to and from your polling place easier than ever," the company notes in a blog post on the feature. Uber will be promoting the offer throughout Election Day with reminder alerts to users. Select Lyft users will receive 45% off their Election Day trip to the polls, The Verge reports, noting that getting back from your polling place will cost full price. The company said it would send emails Sunday night to customers in eligible areas, including Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, NC, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Miami, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New Orleans, Nashville, New York City and New Jersey, Orange County, CA, Philadelphia, Portland, OR, Phoenix, Raleigh, NC, San Diego, and Washington, D.C. If you're determined to drive yourself to the polls, but don't have a car, Zipcar is offering members an alternative: a free rental. The service will make more than 7,000 cars available for free between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. Tuesday. During that time, members of the service can reserve a free car through the company's app or website. Maven -- the ride-sharing business from General Motors -- will offer riders $5 off all day, a spokesperson tells The Detroit Free press.
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Uber, Lyft, Zipcar Offer Free Or Discounted Rides To Polls On Election Day More

Uber, Lyft, Zipcar Offer Free Or Discounted Rides To Polls On Election Day

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  • Free Rides! (Score:3)

    by ADRA ( 37398 ) on Monday November 07, 2016 @07:51PM (#53233987)

    But since you're black, the drivers won't pick you up anyway (runs from the room screeming)!

    • Drivers? I thought these people were simply sharing rides.

      You mean Uber and Lyft are cab companies because you're contacting them to have one of their drivers come pick you up to take you to the destination of your choice, independent from where the driver was going? Unpossible!

      • Notice the cab companies aren't offering anything. Fuck the cab companies.

    • Are they aware that Portland OR only has ballot drop offs, not polling places?

  • Seeing as they are only doing this in Democrat strongholds, I feel justified wasting their time with a script that will post fake ride requests all day long.

    Only problem will be that every request will be from a brand new user.

    • Phoenix, Dallas, and Orange County are on the list, but since there's not a lot of question how those states will go, it's unlikely to change much. They're aiming for MI, NC, FL, and PA.

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Dutch Gun ( 899105 )

      Well, to be fair, just about any big city is a Democrat stronghold. So, yeah, I guess? Not too surprising, as it seems like many tech millionaires lean to the left.

      You should see who my neighbors in Seattle keep electing. It's pretty entertaining to see left-leaning Democrats on the city council being berated by hard-core Socialists also on the council for not being liberal enough. Did you know they actually spend city money to paint crosswalks in rainbow colors? Hooray, right?! Yet a lot of Seattleit

  • but you'll pay for the return trip for four years

  • Who gets the discounts? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by penguinoid ( 724646 ) on Monday November 07, 2016 @08:02PM (#53234055) Homepage Journal

    Select users will receive 45% off their Election Day trip to the polls

    The ones in the demographics likely to vote for the right candidate?

  • What they should do is offer free rides from bars. That's where most of the voters will be.

    • What they should do is offer free rides from bars. That's where most of the voters will be.

      This is a relatively recent development in parts of the US. Used to be, lots of states had laws that bars had to close on Election Day. Now, it's just Kentucky and South Carolina, where it really doesn't matter because everyone there has a still cooking 'shine out behind the meth lab.

    • And then if Trump wins, how about free rides to Canada?

      • >"And then if Trump wins, how about free rides to Canada?"

        That would be perfect, since you can throw away your Constitutional rights by going there just like you wanted to here!

  • 4 more years for Obama (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward

    the only sane option

  • Biased choice of cities? (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward

    Is it me, or does that list look like highly Democratic leaning cities? This smells more of a get out the Democrat vote effort than any sort of noble cause to just increase voter turnout overall.

  • Bias (Score:4, Insightful)

    by manu0601 ( 2221348 ) on Monday November 07, 2016 @08:46PM (#53234245)
    Let me guess: the eligible areas have been selected because a higher voter turnout there favors a given candidate over the other one?

    • Re:Bias (Score:4, Interesting)

      by h33t l4x0r ( 4107715 ) on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @12:38AM (#53235109)
      If there was a liberal agenda, the areas would be swing state inner cities, not places that are already locked-in. This is maybe just good PR.

      • There's a lot more than the president on the line. Every vote matters in state elections. That said, of course they'll run the promotion in the areas with the highest population density because that's how their business works... and it so happens that places with high population density are democratic.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by GNious ( 953874 )

      Curious: Is there already a bias in who would avail them of this offer?
        - Younger people ?
        - Lower income ?
        - .... ?
      And, of cause, do any of these group lean more towards one candidate or another?

  • This is a blatant violation of federal law. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Whatsisname ( 891214 ) on Monday November 07, 2016 @08:49PM (#53234259) Homepage

    When will see the gypsy cab companies' leadership go to prison for breaking the law, including 18 U.S. Code 597:

    Whoever makes or offers to make an expenditure to any person, either to vote or withhold his vote, or to vote for or against any candidate; and

    Whoever solicits, accepts, or receives any such expenditure in consideration of his vote or the withholding of his vote—

    Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; and if the violation was willful, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.

    I'm pretty sure this activity is a blatant violation of this law, but it's not like we'll ever see it enforced because APPS.

    • Re:This is a blatant violation of federal law. (Score:5, Insightful)

      by demonlapin ( 527802 ) on Monday November 07, 2016 @09:21PM (#53234409) Homepage Journal
      Given that there are all manner of free "go vote" shuttles provided every election season, I'm pretty sure that giving someone a ride straight to or from the polling place isn't a violation of that law.
    • Sure, let's lock up the people giving out the "I voted" stickers and buttons while we're at it. Give me a break. I'm so glad this shit is almost over.

  • Number 1 search (Score:4, Insightful)

    by rtb61 ( 674572 ) on Monday November 07, 2016 @08:50PM (#53234263) Homepage

    Let me guess the number one map search will be, the location of polling stations relative to where they actually want to go ;D.

  • I'll bet Uber drivers love this - I've rarely had a driver who could legally vote in America. (Yeah, I guess I'm one of the few people who talks to their drivers.)

  • By limiting the areas that this offer applies to they may be tampering.

    "eligible areas, including Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, NC, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit,
    Miami, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New Orleans, Nashville, New York City and New Jersey, Orange County, CA,
    Philadelphia, Portland, OR, Phoenix, Raleigh, NC, San Diego, and Washington, D.C."

    The service is not cash and ride it requires a smart phone ($$) and credit card.
    Drivers can refuse to give rides .... A demographic review seems to be in

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