In a statement, the electronic platform for road transport in unmarked vehicles (TVDE) explains that during the pilot phase, in the city of Lisbon, the availability of the service “may vary according to the number of drivers available, but the option will be available every day of the week”, at no additional cost, and will later be extended to other cities in the country.

With this feature, available from next week for both female passengers and drivers, “the platform reinforces its commitment to making the mobility experience more personalized, comfortable and adjusted to the preferences of users”.

“We want Uber to be the most convenient and personalized platform for all women. This new feature responds to a clear desire of many drivers and users and also represents an opportunity for more women to feel motivated to drive with Uber, reinforcing their autonomy and freedom of choice. By allowing them to choose who transports them or who they transport, we are making the sector more inclusive, representative of the population and attractive to women,” said Uber’s general manager in Portugal, Francisco Vilaça, quoted in the note.

According to the platform, the new feature “responds to a structural challenge in the mobility sector, given that currently only 9% of TVDE drivers in Portugal are women”.

“By creating conditions that provide greater freedom of choice, Uber believes that this feature can contribute to attracting more women to the activity, making driving a more attractive, flexible professional option that is adjusted to the different needs and preferences of each woman”, says the statement.

According to Uber, the launch in Portugal comes after the implementation of this product in European markets such as France, Germany and Poland, as well as in South Africa, Argentina and Australia. Uber already offers other options, such as “Uber Sênior” and “Uber for Teens”, giving “more autonomy and freedom to older people and teenagers, so that they can travel easily and safely, with the confidence and support of their family”.

In November 2024, a new TVDE platform was due to be launched, Pinker, with the aim of providing women with security when requesting a vehicle, which would be driven exclusively by women, according to the project’s founder Mônica Faneco. However, the platform – which assumed that its main difference from its competitors operating in Portugal, Uber and Bolt, was that it only accepted female drivers and was for the exclusive use of women – never hit the road. The Institute for Mobility and Transport (IMT) ordered Pinker to cease operating for failing to comply with the principle of non-discrimination, as it was not in compliance with "article 7 of Law no. 45/2018, which determines that there can be no discrimination in access to TVDE services".

"Users, both actual and potential, have equal access to TVDE services, and these cannot be refused by the provider on grounds such as ancestry, age or sex", states the article of the law that governs the activity.