Ride-hailing apps are truly a blessing. However, on some days when riders wish they can just sit quietly in the car, the driver keeps on talking to them.
Everyone has been in a situation where they have had a stressful day at work or at home and want nothing more but a driver to just keep silent and let the rider have a quiet time. Now, Lyft is doing something to solve that.
About Zen Mode
Lyft is adding a feature that allows its beloved passengers to notify the driver that they do not want small talk. According to Lyft head of product for autonomous driving Taggart Matthiesen, the company will be playing around with a "zen mode" feature soon. However, it has no definite plans for it at the moment.
The zen mode will be a rider's way of telling the driver that he or she is not interested to engage in a conversation and just want some time alone. Matthiesen stated that the said feature would be an addition to Lyft's plans to make the rider's experience more personalized.
If passengers choose to add the "zen mode" to their Lyft app, declining a chitchat will be part of the transaction and would not feel like a personal rejection on the driver's attempt to be friendly.
More Personalized Rides
Furthermore, the company is trying its best to get more autonomous cars that could learn about the passengers on the road. Lyft is currently testing it out in Las Vegas.
Matthiesen said that the autonomous car will know a lot about its passengers such as the temperature that it will want. It will also know when to dim its lights when it is early in the morning to let its riders sleep.
As of June, Lyft has doubled its value in a year and is now worth an astounding $15 billion. The startup has been growing rapidly and trying to make its rides as convenient as possible for its users, with schemes such as including price and time comparisons for their rides.
Many Lyft passengers have complained about their talkative drivers on Twitter.
Matthiesen added that although he finds the idea interesting, it is not a feature at the moment. However, the option to develop it to be a part of transportation or ride-hailing apps would be an amazing improvement.
