As floods and rainstorms continue to devastate areas of Queensland and New South Wales, like many Australians across the country, here at Uber ANZ, we feel compelled to do more to support impacted communities. A few of the actions we’re committing to, to aid relief are:

Supporting flood affected areas:

  • Humanitarian aid: We’re donating $100,000 to the Red Cross Floods Appeal to enable volunteers and staff to be on the ground supporting evacuation, relief and outreach across flood affected areas. 
  • Free rides and meals for volunteers: We’re donating $10,000 in rides and meals to Lifeline, who are managing a sharp increase in Australians seeking crisis support, in addition to losing six of its much needed call centres. With volunteers travelling further to call centres to provide their invaluable support for Australians in emotional turmoil, we hope Uber’s service can ease the strain on travelling during this challenging time. Red Cross volunteers on the ground will also be provided with free rides, meals and groceries, inclusive of our donation.
  • Communications appeal: Uber users will also see an email communications campaign this week appealing for donations to the Red Cross Floods Appeal. With millions of Aussies using the Uber app, we hope to reach as many as possible who are able to contribute.

Supporting Uber’s communities:

  • Mental wellbeing and support: The team at Red Cross will also be providing mental wellbeing phone support to driver-partners and delivery people directly impacted by the floods. 
  • Service availability and keeping users safe: Over the past couple of weeks our team has been working around the clock to monitor conditions and scale back our services in impacted areas. On a daily basis we are reviewing where it is safe to resume services available through the Uber app. 
  • Safety communications: We’re using our communication channels to ensure that everyone who uses our platform – that’s riders, driver-partners, delivery people, merchants and Eaters – have the right information to prioritise their safety by sharing guidelines and information from state emergency services. 

You can also read about what our friends at Car Next Door are doing here.

Our thoughts are with everyone impacted by this severe weather, and we will continue to assess where services offered through the Uber apps can support as communities rebuild. 

 

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