Rideshare pick-up spots change in downtown Palm Springs
The City of Palm Springs is now taking on a new pilot program to designate where rideshare companies can pick up passengers in downtown.
Drivers will now have to get passengers at designated pick-up spots.
"...the driver is supposed to follow that rule and pick up their passenger in that location," Palm Springs City Manager David Ready said.
Ready says passengers will receive a notification on where they'll be picked up.
"Those parking spots are blocked off and it’s a 3 minute only for the rideshares to pick up," Ready said.
New signs line one area of Baristo Road, which is one of the pick-up locations if a passenger is hanging out off Palm Canyon Drive between Arenas and Baristo Roads.
Ready says the purpose of geofencing the area is to alleviate safety concerns.
"For example a car will just stop, pull over and if there’s no parking available a car will just stop and block traffic and if their passengers are getting out on the street, that’s a concern for the passenger," Ready said.
Not everyone is on board with the changes.
"If it’s the weekend, and if they have to walk a block and they’re drinking with friends I don’t think that’s cool," Palm Springs resident Bobby Kelly said.
"As I drive through here it is a bit busy so if an Uber pulls over to the side and wants to pick up a passenger, it can kind of just make it more chaotic," Rancho Mirage resident Alexandria Rosales said.
Rosales has been to downtown Palm Springs plenty of times. She understands the reason behind the change, but believes there are other risks involved.
"Then again I feel like it’s still a little dangerous for people to be walking by themselves, especially a woman to be walking by herself to go on a side street or something," Rosales said.
Meanwhile, Ready says the walk will not be far.
“It’s not going to be a few blocks. It’s probably at most a half a block.”
He says the new system is set to go online with the next week. It will be tested out and based on those results, it may be expanded onward.
