Low-cost public ride-hailing makes inroads in rural US

Advocates say affordable, on-demand ‘microtransit’ initiatives can play a key role in providing transport to vulnerable residents of so-called ‘transit deserts’, though past experiments have shown the programmes can become victims of their own success by ending up oversubscribed. — Bloomberg

WASHINGTON: Unable to drive due to a medical condition, Patricia Robinson had been missing doctor’s appointments and felt isolated without another means of transport near her home in the US state of North Carolina.

But today, thanks to an on-demand, public ride-sharing service that launched in the small city of Wilson in late 2020, she has a way to get to the doctor and ensure her two daughters can participate in school-related activities.