• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechUber Technologies

Is This New Ride-Sharing Service for Women Already Too Popular?

By
Hilary Brueck
Hilary Brueck
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Hilary Brueck
Hilary Brueck
Down Arrow Button Icon
April 11, 2016, 10:17 AM ET
Woman Driving A Car
Berlin, Germany - December 22: A woman sitting behind the steering wheel of a car and runs over a highway on December 22, 2015 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images)Photograph by Thomas Trutschel Photothek — Getty Images

Don’t try to hop on board this new “chariot” for a ride yet.

Chariot for Women, a new ride-hailing service that will only serve women and children, was originally set to start picking up its first riders in Boston next week.

But now the company is pushing back its April 19 launch date in an effort to sign up more female drivers across the country before the service goes live.

Founder Michael Pelletz tells Fortune 4,000 women across the country have applied to drive with the company over the past three days.

“By the time we launch, we will have tens of thousands of women signed up,” Pelletz wrote Fortune in an email.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Pelletz, himself a former Uber driver, says he got the idea for the women’s-only taxi service after he drove home a man who was so drunk he was barely conscious.

He decided to build a safer alternative to Uber, one just for women drivers and riders and people who identify as women. (Transgender women will be able to ride with the service, TechCrunch reports.) Pelletz noted the startup is being funded by a single angel investor, who he also described as a friend.

While there’s no word on when the rubber will hit the road for the company yet, some are already questioning if a service that refuses to pick up men is even legal. Boston-based attorney Dhalia C. Rudavsky told the Boston Globe that “companies that provide a service need to accept potential customers without discriminating.”

A similar service focused on providing safer rides to women, SheTaxis, launched back in 2014. But while that company primarily caters to women drivers and riders, the company does offer men rides with its male drivers.

Rider safety has been a sore spot lately for ride-sharing giant Uber. The San Francisco-based company has defended its own reputation against rape and sexual assault claims as well as against allegations the company lied about the strength of its background checks. In California, Uber settled a $25 million civil lawsuit on background checks earlier this month.

What Uber Did For Ride-Sharing:

Chariot for Women says in addition to stringent background checks, the service will also have riders and drivers share a “safe word” to verify each others’ identity before women hop into cars. That is, at least, when this Chariot actually gets its drivers out on the road.

About the Author
By Hilary Brueck
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Big TechTech
A court just ruled that tech addiction is real—and dangerous. It could be Meta and YouTube’s Big Tobacco moment
By Kristin StollerMarch 25, 2026
27 minutes ago
Warner gestures
AIAmerican Politics
New college grad unemployment will spike to 35% in 2 years, senator warns, forcing ‘Dario, Sam’ to quit AI fear-mongering
By Jacqueline MunisMarch 25, 2026
2 hours ago
Big TechMeta
Meta and YouTube found liable in landmark child social media harm case, ordered to pay $3 million—with punitive damages still to come
By Kaitlyn Huamani, Barbara Ortutay and The Associated PressMarch 25, 2026
2 hours ago
NewslettersCIO Intelligence
The ROI for AI isn’t one-size-fits-all, says data storage CTO
By John KellMarch 25, 2026
3 hours ago
PoliticsDonald Trump
Trump taps Zuckerberg, Huang, Ellison for tech advisory council—but excludes Musk and Altman
By Sharon GoldmanMarch 25, 2026
3 hours ago
EuropeLetter from London
Rishi Sunak is giving advice to CEOs on AI. Here are his golden rules
By Kamal AhmedMarch 25, 2026
4 hours ago

Most Popular

Magazine
The youngest-ever female CEO of a Fortune 500 company is fighting Trump's cuts to keep Medicaid strong
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
1 day ago
Commentary
The Treasury just declared the U.S. insolvent. The media missed it
By Fortune EditorsMarch 23, 2026
2 days ago
Success
Palantir’s billionaire CEO says only two kinds of people will succeed in the AI era: trade workers — ‘or you’re neurodivergent’
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
1 day ago
Energy
Nobel laureate Paul Krugman calls it 'treason': $580 million in suspicious oil futures traded minutes before Trump's Iran reversal
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
1 day ago
Success
The job market is so bad that ‘reverse recruiters’ are charging $1,500 a month just to help people look for jobs
By Fortune EditorsMarch 25, 2026
13 hours ago
Success
JPMorgan has started monitoring the keystrokes, video calls, and meetings of its junior investment bankers—and they say it's for employee well-being
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.