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“Like every other business in the country, we’re working very
hard to bring in employees,” said Robert Kellman, Uber’s manager
of midwestern policy. “Demand for rides is actually outpacing
the number of drivers who work on our platform.”
That said, Uber and/or UberX service remains available
practically everywhere throughout the state with more drivers
on-ramping to the platform weekly.
“About a month ago we undertook a $250 million initiative to
recruit new drivers,” Kellman said.
24/7 service is almost always available in markets even smaller
than Chicago: Places like Champaign or Peoria; whereas in
Illinois’s smallest communities, coverage may be spottier or
with longer wait times.
Black car and S.U.V. service remains, for now, primarily the
realm of large urban centers like Chicago.
What is the same everywhere, Kellman said, is the vetting of
drivers and their vehicles.
“All drivers undergo the same background check,” he said. “We
also have certain standards for the vehicle. They have to have
four seats, four seatbelts ... that kind of thing.”
For those looking to become drivers, companies have information
and an initial questionnaire accessible through the same apps
used to summon a rideshare.
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