Uber’s latest idea? It’s basically just a bus, say critics

Uber’s latest shuttle service innovation sounds a lot like a rebranded bus system, and people online have taken notice.

On May 14, 2025, Uber unveiled Route Share, a new shuttle service that is designed to ease the weekday commute. The feature offers fixed-route rides that run every 20 minutes “along direct routes during morning and evening commute hours” in major cities, like NYC and Chicago, according to the press release. Each vehicle seats up to three riders and costs about half the price of an UberX.

Uber marketed the service as a breakthrough for everyday commuters. However, many observers on social media couldn’t help but point out the similarities to a very old idea: the public bus.

That being said, the Route Share model doesn’t exactly mirror the standard public bus model. It is more expensive than one swipe on the MTA, but also more private, with only a couple of other people in the shuttle at a time. 

“It’s the perfect way to get to and from work without breaking the bank,” the company said in a press release. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi added that the feature was built with affordability in mind. “The goal for us as we build our products is to put people at the center of everything, and right now for us it means making things a little easier, a little more predictable, and, above all, just a little more—or a lot more—affordable.”

Reactions to the announcement

Social media took off, mocking Uber for reinventing the wheel after the Route Share announcement.

“Uber just invented… the bus,” tech founder Marc Seitz quipped in a viral video post. 

Former healthtech CEO Andy O’Donoghue echoed the sentiment. He wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “Uber announced a new type of ride that travels along a set route, comes every 20 minutes, includes up to two other passengers, and costs up to 50 percent less than an UberX ride. In other words, a bus.”

Others responded more critically. “Saying Uber ‘invented’ the bus is as stupid as saying FedEx and UPS invented the post office,” one commenter noted.

While the jokes rolled in, others saw a more serious context behind Uber’s move. Public transit agencies across the U.S. have been struggling. In cities like Boston, fixed-route shuttle services have been shut down due to budget cuts or lack of demand.

“I can’t believe we live in a society where the mere act of a private company competing with the public sector is considered bonkers. Just keep using public services if you so want! Is this not America?” asked @EnigmaDuck.

Indeed, some users didn’t view Uber’s move as innovation. They saw it as a reaction to the gaps left by crumbling transit systems.

Tech blogger Jane Manchun Wong tweeted, “Maybe ask your local transit agencies why they aren’t offering / approving these fixed-route services in the first place? Uber Shuttle wouldn’t have existed if transit already met the riders’ needs.”

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