The tricky task of timing pickup at the airport from a ride-hailing app is getting easier for a lot of Lyft users this summer.
The company has launched a new feature that lets you order a ride as soon as your flight lands at select U.S. airports.
Instead of trying to gauge walking distances from gate to pickup area—sometimes in an unfamiliar city, no less—and factor in the timing of variables such as whether you've checked a bag or need a bathroom break, you can simply pull out your phone when the plane touches down and use the Lyft mobile app to preorder a ride.
Then the app uses location tracking to keep tabs on your progress through the airport, matching you with a driver when you're close to the designated pickup spot.
(Lyft's new Airport Preorder feature | Credit: Lyft)
According to Lyft, the feature means "zero guesswork about when to book a ride and shorter waits at the pickup area."
There's no problem, Lyft says, if you need to stop at baggage claim to retrieve checked luggage or need more time to traverse the airport for any other reason.
And you don't have to worry about price fluctuations, either. Customers who request a car upon landing at the airport lock in the quoted price, per Lyft, "even if they need more time getting to the pickup area."
At the moment, the new feature is available at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Chicago Midway (MDW), and Chicago O'Hare (ORD), with New York City's JFK Airport, Austin–Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) in the Texas capital, and Seattle-Tacoma (SEA) on deck. Expect the feature to roll out to other U.S. airports after that.
If you're at a participating airport, just look for "Airport Preorder" in the Lyft app.
Your move, Uber.
