Popular transit app, um, Transit App, has added Uber support in cities that support the on-demand taxi company.
In Canada, this means users opening up Transit App in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa and Halifax will see, in addition to the closest bus, streetcar, subway times, an option to hail an Uber.
The agreement between the two companies comes after Uber’s integration within Google Maps earlier this year, though the deal with Transit App is a bit more perplexing.
In a blog post, Transit App said that it considers ridesharing programs like UberX a form of urban transit, since it results in fewer cars on the road in the long run. They also go hand in hand with bikesharing programs like Bixi, which are available in Toronto and Montreal.
Though users can hide Uber from the list of transportation options, Transit App hopes that it will be an appropriate companion for times when transit is either too slow, or infeasible, to use. “For public transit devotees, you might realize that some trips just make more sense with Uber. Most of all, we want to show drivers that public transit and sharing services are an attractive and reliable alternative to private cars,” the blog post says. A/B comparisons allow users to see how much time is saved taking an Uber over the equivalent transit alternative.
The integration rolled out earlier this week, and users can hail an Uber cab from within the app. Transit App’s CEO, Sam Vermette, declined to comment on whether money exchanged hands, but indicated that “there is a revenue picture for us,” down the road.
[source]Transit App[/source]
