Editor's Note: As of Friday, April 15, 2022, Shannon Bradley, the woman profiled in this story, is no longer affiliated with Trips4Women.
As a woman, Shannon Bradley says she understands feeling uneasy in rideshare situations.
“Since I’ve been there myself and had to do rides and had that fear while I was in the car, 'Am I going to get where I am supposed to go?'” Bradley said.
Based on her experiences, Bradley and Trips4Women are changing gears on how women rideshare in and around Kansas City.
“I think women should be able to have a safe way and not feel like they’re stuck or be afraid to take a rideshare when they don’t have a ride just because they don’t want to get in a car with a man they don’t know,” Bradley said.
After hearing countless stories of women complaining about more than just a bumpy ride, she decided it was time to bring Trips4Women to the Kansas City area.
“What’s that man behind me doing? What does he have in his pocket? Is he going to lock the child safety locks? Is he going to lock the windows so I can’t do anything?” Bradley said.
Now in the driver's seat, with the click of a button, Bradley says she and Trips4Women are giving women a break when it comes to feeling unsafe. Women are both behind the wheel as driversand in the passenger seat as riders.
“It’s another sense of security," Bradley said. "It’s another woman they’re in the car with, it’s not a strange man. Our drivers are all background checked, insured, licensed, everything is uploaded in there."
She launched Trips4Women last week in Kansas City and now has eight drivers and 70 registered riders hitting the road.
As Trips4Women continues to get off the ground, Bradley says she’s embarking on a journey to bring more women to and from their destination safely.
“Women are saying, one who is a single mom, 'Thank you for this.' And younger women are saying, 'I can go out with my friends, thank you, we don’t have to worry, we can call another woman to pick us up,'” Bradley said.
