All of us at Uber continue to be horrified at the devastating war that has been imposed on millions of innocent people in Ukraine following the invasion by Russia.

Earlier this month, Uber stepped up to help with the growing humanitarian crisis on the ground. So far, we have offered free rides to people fleeing Ukraine at the Polish border, helped transport food and essential goods, and donated millions of dollars toward humanitarian aid.

This week we are launching a special Uber for Ukraine feature in the Uber app in 75 cities across 15 countries in Europe. This feature allows Uber riders to select an option for their trip that includes a surcharge to support relief efforts in Ukraine. These contributions will go to the International Rescue Committee which is supporting both internally displaced people inside Ukraine and those who have been forced to flee to neighbouring countries to escape the war.

This new feature in Europe is in addition to the Uber Donate button launched earlier this month in the US which has already contributed more than $2.8 million in donations – with $1.8M so far raised from US riders and an additional $1M matched by Uber. We will also launch this Donate button in select European countries in the coming days.

Building on our current effort to provide free Uber rides at the Polish border, we plan to expand our support for refugees in other neighboring countries. With hundreds of thousands of people also fleeing Ukraine towards Romania and Czechia, we will extend our support of free rides to both countries and also help with the transportation of humanitarian aid, including food and essential goods.

Last week we restarted Uber services in Lviv with a focus on helping to move relief workers and distributing humanitarian aid. Today Uber will recommence in Vinnytsia and start operations for the first time in Ternopil and Chernivtsi. We continue to work toward relaunching our service in additional Ukrainian cities, prioritizing safety and always working in close partnership with local authorities and NGOs. All payments made for trips on Uber in Ukraine at this time will go entirely to drivers, with Uber taking no commission.

And our teams continue to work 24/7 to support our Uber colleagues and their families, help keep drivers and riders safe, and partner with organisations to support relief efforts on the ground.