Via Rideshare Service Expands in Chicago

The company hopes that a broader service area and discounted rides will help people better access transit services.

1 minute read

August 14, 2019, 11:00 AM PDT

By Camille Fink


Chicago Street

Jeff Summers / Flickr

The rideshare company Via is expanding service to all of Chicago and offering $2.50 rides to and from transit stations in part of the new service area.

"Via, which came to Chicago in late 2015, specializes in multi-passenger rides. The company’s mobile app connects passengers who are headed the same way, and customers may have to walk a block or two before and after the ride," writes Mary Wisniewski.

Uber and Lyft make up the vast majority of rideshare sales in Chicago, with Via accounting for less than 1 percent of sales, reports Wisniewski. However, most Via trips are shared, which is not the case for other operators, and the company says its goal is to become a shared ride feeder service to the city’s transit network. 

Tuesday, August 6, 2019 in Chicago Tribune

Young Professional

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

Get top-rated, practical training for planners

"Planetizen federal action tracker" logo superimposed over black and white image of US Capitol dome.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

October 28, 2026 - Zachary Whalen

A car drives through a puddle, making a large splash. Rain pours down.

California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour

If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.

October 28, 2026 - Grist

Lake Powell with much of the water evaporated.

Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River

Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.

October 30, 2026 - Yale Environment 360

: Construction of massive Samsung semiconductor fabrication plant

In Texas, data centers are swallowing promised parkland

Residents who moved to Taylor, Texas for a rural community now have to contend with three data centers in their backyard.

15 minutes ago - Inside Climate News

A construction crew working on SunZia.

How a Chicago-sized wind farm beat the odds and powered on

The project spanned five presidential administrations and a standoff with a U.S. military base.

1 hour ago - Grist

A rendering of the basketball court, a green court under a blue sky.

MTA gives itself 30 days to transform pit into basketball court

The site has been under construction since 2022; the city originally estimated it would finish the court in 2024.

2 hours ago - Gothamist