Alberta develops insurance policy for riding-hailing companies such as Uber

Uber’s app for drivers be will updated with new features that use the sensors in a driver’s phone to keep track of their acceleration and braking.

While a number of real people have heeded Uber’s call to action, a quick skim through the tweets that include the phrase #JerseyLovesUber reveal that a substantial number of them come from accounts that have never tweeted before, or tweet nothing but spammy links, or are associated with people located outside the United States. Now, instead of relying exclusively on someone’s word, Uber said it will be able to refer back to data collected by the app in cities where the pilot is running – something it had not been able to do before it began testing this feature in November in Houston.

Trucking companies frequently use this technology to monitor its drivers, but Uber’s drivers are independent contractors, so there is some question about the overall legality of this policy.

According to the Associated Press, the app will also measure phone movements that “may indicate the driver is clutching the phone while steering”.

Ahead of the 4th of July weekend, which is notorious for drunk driving accidents, Uber polled users across the country about how the service interacts with the issue of drunk driving.

Uber said the main goal of collecting this data is to help drivers become better at their jobs and give them feedback that is more detailed than the five-star ratings customers leave for each driver. Sometimes passengers report to Uber that their drivers were speeding.

“As of today, we do not have any specific information on a possible relaunch of our services in cities across the province (Alberta)”, Jean-Christophe de Le Rue, an Uber spokesman, wrote in an email. It’s unclear if Uber would ban a driver if it’s clear he or she regularly drives erratically. As outlined in the video below, Uber will present drivers with a post-trip summary that notifies them if data suggests they were driving too aggressively. Amendments were made in May to Alberta’s traffic safety act allowing the companies to operate, including requiring companies to ensure drivers have professional licences and undergo deep police background checks. The app does this if it detects the phone moving excessively while you’re driving.

Uber will get daily reports, but says the info will not be used to penalize drivers or even reward safe drivers.

Uber will also send drivers who are on the app during early morning hours or late at night “recharge reminders”.