A few years ago, a 109-year-old woman in Scotland became an icon after saying the "secret to long life is avoiding men." Well, it seems some Saudi women are trying their best to do just that, and Uber may have just helped them out.
This week, Uber announced a new feature that lets women drivers in the kingdom avoid male passengers. The feature - known as Women Preferred View - came after months of research and an in-depth understanding of preferences and concerns of women drivers in Saudi Arabia.
The study found 74 percent of prospective women drivers wouldn't want to drive male passengers around.
"We launched this feature in response to the feedback we received from women drivers in Saudi Arabia and we are committed to always being thoughtful of how we can always improve their experience driving on the app," Uber said, according to Mashable.
All under Uber's campaign "Masaruky"
In March 2018, Uber launched a campaign titled Masaruky - Arabic for "your path" - with the aim to increase women's participation in the workforce in Saudi Arabia through the use of Uber technology.
The two-year initiative was launched just months before Saudi women officially hit the road.
"With Masaruky and the announcement of the 1 million riyals pledge, we're seeking to contribute to the new chapter for women mobility in the kingdom," said Anthony Khoury, Uber Regional General Manager, at the time.
In 2017, Saudi Arabia ended its ban on women driving, which took effect one year later. In 2018, thousands of women finally got the chance to get behind the wheel ... and now behind an Uber wheel.