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Holiday travel is already a contact sport—and no one knows it better than Uber. Fresh off a record-breaking Thanksgiving (the company’s busiest airport pickup days ever), Uber is rolling out new tools to make the rest of the season a little less chaotic. The top of the list? A real, physical, tap-it-with-your-actual-finger Uber kiosk, debuting at LaGuardia Airport’s Terminal C.
The kiosk offers a phone-free, app-free, data-plan-free way to request a ride. International visitors without roaming, travelers with dead batteries and anyone who simply likes a screen they can touch now get a low-tech path to an Uber. Just walk up, type in your destination, browse upfront prices for UberX, Comfort, XL and more, and print your paper receipt (yes, paper) before heading to the pickup point.
LaGuardia is the first test site, but Uber plans to drop additional kiosks into hotels, ports and international hubs in the coming months. If you’ve ever stood in an airport thinking about how there really should be a machine to request a rideshare, you manifested it.
That’s not Uber’s only airport news. Over at Newark, the company is finally launching Uber Shuttle, answering what it says is riders’ most-asked question. The service already runs at JFK and LaGuardia so, now, with Newark in the mix, all major New York and New Jersey airports have shuttle coverage.
The Newark version will operate two fixed routes, one to and from the West Village and another to and from 42nd Street, with several pickup points along the way. Riders see their fare upfront and reserve their seat before traveling.
During the launch period, Uber is keeping all Newark shuttle trips under $15 for a limited time. Real-time vehicle tracking kicks in 25 minutes before pickup and boarding is simple: scan your QR code, grab a seat and let someone else do the slog through traffic.
There’s even a minor but seasonally on-brand update to tipping. A new "live activities" feature for iOS lets riders tip directly from their lock screen before the trip ends. Early pilots show it’s already increasing what drivers take home. The update is now live globally for iPhone users, with Android coming soon.
“After our busiest days for airport pickups ever, we’re doubling down on solutions that make travel easier and more affordable,” said Pradeep Parameswaran, Uber’s global head of mobility, in an official statement. “We’re innovating to make the journey from baggage claim onward smoother and more accessible for everyone.”
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