Uber is slowly aiming to become the one-stop shop for all your transportation needs. Now, customers in Denver can use the app to purchase public transit tickets, TechCrunch reported.
For this project, Uber partnered with Masabi — a London based technology company that develops mobile ticketing for public transportation. Masabi currently works with 30 transportation agencies worldwide, including New York City’s MTA, Los Angeles’ Metrolink, and Boston’s MBTA.
According to TechCrunch, Uber Head of Transit David Reich said in a statement:
”For the first time ever, taking an Uber trip can mean taking public transit. We are excited to expand our collaboration with RTD and Masabi to make Denver the first city in the world where riders can purchase transit tickets and ride public transit seamlessly through the Uber app. With this step, we are moving closer to making Uber’s platform a one-stop shop for transportation access, from shared rides to buses and bikes.”
Back in January, Uber made it possible for users to see Denver’s public transit in the app.
“As we move towards our vision of becoming a one-stop shop for transportation in your city, our riders need the right option available at their fingertips for every trip,” Reich wrote. “Many times, it can be faster or cheaper to take public transportation than any other form of travel, and we want to give our riders a seamless way to access that option right from our app.”
When Uber originally added Denver’s public transit to its app, the company said that more cities would be following soon. Uber followed up on that promise by adding London’s public transit system this week.
Public transportation and ride-share apps are often seen as being in competition with one another. Ride-share apps can be faster, but public transit is generally way cheaper. It’ll be interesting to see how integrating the two plays out.
