The Taxi app will allow its users to decide if they want a female driver

With the aim of continuing to contribute to the comfort and safety of taxi travelers in Colombia, Free taxi app announced on Tuesday, March 14, a new personalized travel option which includes the possibility of choosing that the service be carried out by a partner driver.

This is part of all the changes that have been made to personalize trips and improve the quality of services, thanks to which travelers will be able to choose, from this Tuesday, the characteristics they want in their service.

Likewise, in addition to the possibility of selecting the gender of the driver, another of the outstanding new options is that now passengers will be able to include, when requesting service, who will be traveling with their pet. In this way, the taxi driver will know that the trip includes a pet, in order to avoid that once in the taxi, the driver cancels the service.

It is well known that some drivers do not accept pets, and many users, reported Taxis Libres to GlobeLiveMedia Colombia, have reported problems with this problem, which is why this improvement has been implemented, in order that, in advance, this fact can be notified.

And a third adjustment that has been made for users is that now they will also have the option of requesting a driver trained in first aid, or selecting a vehicle with a large boot, with air conditioning or with a charger for mobile phones.

It should be remembered that there are currently 747 driversand one of the strategies of Taxis Libres is to continue to increase the number of female drivers, as part of all the gender strategies that have been put in place in recent years.

Taxi drivers and gender equality

This project is in addition to the strategy called, Taxi drivers trained in gender equality, applied in Cali and Bogotá and which includes actions such as the Virtual School for the prevention of harassment and sexual violence in transport and in public spaces.

This knowledge is of great value because it includes, among other aspects, the management of basic information on the Care itinerary for women victims of gender violencein order to be able to accompany and guide those who need it.

This strategy is part of the overall program called Safe cities and public spaces for women and girls, of the United Nations, UN Women. Likewise, it has been recognized and welcomed by national and international organizations such as the Transport Gender LAB program of the Inter-American Development Bank, which has highlighted this experience as a success story in Latin America.

In fact, according to reports from the Gender Equality Undersecretary of the Cali Mayor’s Office, in 2022 nearly 127 female victims of gender-based violence were referred to Casa Matria by allied drivers affiliated with Taxis Libres. In said city, there are more than 450 drivers trained in this problem.

In the case of Bogotá, this initiative is developed hand in hand with the Women’s Secretariat and UN Women was launched in 2022 and has trained over 263 drivers.

Finally, travelers can also contact the Violet Line 018000112137 Free Taxis App, a psychosocial hotline for women who feel vulnerable or find themselves in a situation that causes them discomfort related to gender violence, whether in a public or private space. They are guided and advised there 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.