Uber expands its program offering free and discounted rides to seniors to Northeast Philly

Uber is expanding its program that offers free and discounted rides to seniors to Northeast Philadelphia following its launch in West and Northwest Philly in the fall.

The program began when Uber reached out to State Rep. Morgan Cephas, who represents parts of West Philadelphia, amid major SEPTA service cuts that were ultimately reversed. The company offered to provide transportation assistance. The resulting program has since facilitated nearly 1,500 free rides.

The program will broaden into Northeast Philly in the coming weeks through a partnership with KleinLife, a community center in the neighborhood that serves more than 3,500 seniors.

Andre Krug, KleinLife’s president and CEO, said the opportunity came to his organization through State Rep. Sean Dougherty, who represents part of Northeast Philly.

“This is the biggest issue facing Northeast because there is a huge senior population and no cohesive transportation system to speak of,“ Krug said. ”It’s pretty bad."

The program will function similarly through KleinLife as it does through ACHIEVEability and the Ogontz Avenue Revitalization Corporation, Uber’s partner organizations in West and Northwest Philly.

Uber provides the nonprofits with business accounts and then loads a sum of money into the account for the organization to use for its seniors as it sees fit. When a senior wants a ride, KleinLife staff will arrange it, Krug said.

For KleinLife, which will receive a $10,000 sum from Uber, Krug said it plans to allocate the money mainly toward helping its lowest-income members access doctor’s appointments and other medical needs.

“We want to make sure only the neediest will get the funds and for the most vital type of services,” he said.

The expansion also includes renewed funding for the leg of the program run through ACHIEVEability, said Uber spokesperson Jazmin Kay.

The funding comes through Uber’s social impact microgrant program, which offers grants focused around certain objectives including improving health access. The company saw Philly as a good candidate for the grants following SEPTA’s struggles last year, Kay said.

“We realized that this was going to disproportionately impact seniors, many of whom have opted not to drive on their own,” Kay said. “Then we saw a lot of success.”

Philly is one of three cities across the United States that has benefited from an Uber program geared toward meeting the transportation needs of seniors in the past year, Kay said.

With this latest expansion, the rideshare company has now spent more than $50,000 on the senior ride program in Philly.