Both ride-hailing companies recently announced partnerships with service providers that allow older customers to book rides through a phone operator, bypassing smartphone apps entirely. Neither service requires customers to have accounts with Uber or Lyft or to own smartphones. Lyft’s operator service is only available to GreatCall members, and Uber’s operator service through 24Hr Home Care, named RideWith24, is available to the public via a toll-free number. With GreatCall, customers press zero on their GreatCall Jitterbug phones and speak with an operator, who books the ride on their behalf. To book a ride with Uber, customers call RideWith24 to speak with an operator, who takes the customer’s credit card details on file and books a ride for them.

Source: Los Angeles Times August 30, 2016 13:43 UTC