UTA On Demand

And may I just say how grateful I feel that I have found this service by UTA. I grew up in the downtown neighborhood where I learned the train and bus system at a very early age, and just have always admired UTA because I know I can always count on them. Especially when life takes a turn on you and your means of transportation get negatively impacted. I always knew I could at least count on our public transportation system. (for the most part, because weird schedules) but when I moved in the southern part of the valley I had noticed no bus stops really in the area. So I was just so grateful to have stumbled across this new service being offered in certain areas like myself… thank you!

I have been using UTA On Demand since April of last year, and so far I can say that for the most part it has been absolutely horrible. There have only been about three times when my vehicle arrived at the time quoted. When I would attempt to use it to get to work, I would have to book my ride an hour before I need to leave in order to hopefully secure a ride. I have also found the drivers to be quite rude, and it is very frustrating trying to communicate with somebody who doesn’t speak a word of English. Due to the fact that I am blind, I have had drivers ask me rude and invasive questions when they could speak English, and I have also had them touch me without my consent. One driver nearly grabbed my breast when attempting to help me put on my seatbelt even though I pointed out several times that I did not need help with the seatbelt. I have also had several drivers claim not to be able to see me even though I was at the pick up location. To be fair, some of the pick up locations can be difficult to find, but in these cases I always put directions in the comment field in English and sometimes Spanish. I don’t believe that the drivers actually read any comments posted in the comment fields. All of the above has happened when I could get a ride, but 98% of the time there is simply no ride available. Truthfully, I would not take Uta on demand if I had any other viable options. Unfortunately Uta has taken away the buses where I live, so on demand is the only public transportation option besides Uber or Lyft. Overall I would say that Uta on demand is probably not worth using for most people. However, if you have a disability of any kind, forget about it.

I’m typically generous when it comes to stuff like this, but after today I can’t be. I just watched a woman cry because she very nearly missed her uncle’s funeral because this service ignored her need for a wheelchair, and arrived 50 minutes after her request for a ride. I’ve had similar experiences, at one time waiting more than 3 hours for a ride that would have lasted 15 minutes. If it says any more than 20 minutes on your wait time- be prepared to wait as long as 30-45. When you actually CAN get a ride. I can tell you, waiting hours in a freezing winter has made me sick on multiple occasions because of the misleading times. Unless you have the time and patience for a very long wait time (I had one instance where the rider never even showed up, despite the fact the app said they were 5 minutes away. They did not replace my ride even after I called them) this service is NOT for you. The prices may be attractive, but not worth it. If you have a disability or injury, this is another issue. As I said before, they are rarely accommodating toward wheelchairs, and even upon notifying the service of previous injuries, the drivers were never notified. I can say the drivers are usually very nice people, and as accommodating as they can be, despite how screwed up their service is.