I have come across an interesting twist that Lyft has recently incorporated for the pet lovers.
In an attempt to rectify a saga that garnered media attention last year, Lyft took the opportunity of National Dog Day to introduce a new feature: Pet Mode. This feature enables the travelers to declare that they will be traveling with a pet, thus enabling the pet and the driver to comfortable during the journey.
When it comes to the Pet Mode, it is quite simple; Lyft invites choices, and then one selects pet.
Like Uber’s option, Lyft service allows to inform about the pet’s presence and ensure the driver is willing to meet it. However, to enjoy this feature a passenger has to pay $4 plus the tax amount which the passenger pays. Lyft says that this surcharge is paid to the driver to offset any disruption as claimed in this new development.
Animal Mode and a viral event
The event which led to the development of this particular feature was an interaction between Tux, a cat going through the streets of Ogden in a car with his owner, Palash Pandey, heading to a vet. After a confusion in the location of the other, the Lyft driver drove off with Tux sitting in the back seat. There were several attempts by Pandey to look for her cat but, it was after several days of searching that Tux was found hale and hearty.
The desire to reduce misunderstandings that can appear in the course of communication
The bereaved owner quotes the driver as having told her, “If I had known that you had a cat, you wouldn’t have had to call me for a ride. “ To prevent future reoccurrence of such incidences, there is the Mode Animaux service, which takes into consideration the need to inform all the drivers or the travellers that there are some animals with them. Therefore, it might enhance Lyft travel to become even more fun and safe for all their clients.