Introducing Colorado’s Newest Rideshare Alternative

Drivers Coop Colorado, a groundbreaking rideshare alternative where drivers are co-owners, earning 80% of fares. Backed by the Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center, this community-led initiative offers higher wages, lower rider costs, and inclusive services for all.

Launch of Drivers Coop Colorado

A groundbreaking alternative to the major rideshare apps, Drivers Coop Colorado, has now arrived across Colorado, presenting a unique business model where drivers are co-owners of the platform.

Background and Development

Supported by the nonprofit Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center, this initiative marks a major milestone in employee-ownership models for ridesharing. Minsun Ji, the center’s executive director, emphasizes the community-centric creation of this app, stating, “It has been long years of struggles and efforts to get here, but our workers are super excited and happy because this app works very well,” and adds, “this is the very first community-led rideshare app that has been developed by a community organization right here in the United States.”

Goals and Community Impact

Drivers Coop Colorado aims to revolutionize the rideshare industry with three primary goals:

Higher Wages for Drivers: Allocating 80% of fare revenues directly to drivers to ensure they earn more.

Lower Rider Costs: Reducing overhead by removing CEO overcompensation typical in traditional business models.

Inclusive Services: Offering accessible rides to underserved groups including the elderly, disabled individuals, and those reintegrating from incarceration. Ji mentions, “A lot of disability communities also like to use our app right now because the service is good, and the fare is also very good.”

Current Status and Future Scale-up

Presently, around 250 drivers are active, which can mean longer wait times compared to other services. However, with about 1,600 drivers in the pipeline, expect these delays to shorten soon. Isaac Chinyoka, director of operations, highlights the empowerment given to drivers, commenting, “Most of the drivers have had a situation where their voice is not heard, they’re just drivers,” but within this cooperative, “they can talk. They can speak their mind.”

Driver Perspectives

Dereje Kebede, a driver with nine months’ tenure at Drivers Coop, celebrates this ownership structure and the potential it brings. “We’re going to be part of the owners,” Kebede shares, expressing confidence in customer loyalty to this local initiative. “By downloading the app and then joining this movement, they are helping themselves,” Kebede says, emphasizing that “their money is going to go more at the fare, 80% to the drivers.”

For those interested in the app’s offerings, whether to book rides or to apply as drivers, further information can be accessed via their official website.

Source: Denver7 News

Image: Denver7’s Ethan Carlson