Stop & Shop is expanding its support of seniors during the coronavirus crisis with half-price rides to its grocery stores via Uber.
Under the partnership with Uber Technologies, announced Tuesday, Stop & Shop will provide rides at a 50% discount for customers age 60 and older to and from all stores during shopping hours reserved for seniors. Starting March 19, the Quincy, Mass.-based grocer reserved 6 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. daily at all locations as special shopping hours for this age group to create a less crowded environment for social distancing.
The program kicks off on Wednesday, April 8. To get the half-price rides, eligible customers will use a special code for Uber rides to and from their local Stop & Shop for up to two times per week in the designated shopping hours. The service is available at Stop & Shop’s 400-plus supermarkets in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey.
“We are grateful to Uber for partnering with us to help our communities during this very challenging time and to make it easier for those who may be more vulnerable to make their essential shopping trips,” Stop & Shop President Gordon Reid said in a statement. “We also hope this commitment will provide a helpful option for customers who wish to shop during special hours but who have told us they are unable to drive or live in areas where other means of transportation are limited or have been temporarily suspended.”
Users can get up to $20 off each ride by entering the code “STOPSHOPUBER” in the payment section of the Uber rider app between 6 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. Friends, family or neighbors of customers 60 and older can order a ride on their behalf if those shoppers lack access to smartphone or the Uber app, Stop & Shop said. Rides through the Uber app can be requested to any Stop & Shop twice per week from April 8 to 29.
“All of us are in this together, and we’re proud to partner with Stop & Shop to ensure that older Americans have access to the groceries and essentials they need,” commented said Andrew Macdonald, senior vice president for global operations at San Francisco-based Uber. “Now more than ever, we have to do whatever it takes to ensure that transportation is not a barrier to food security.”
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