This week Uber, a transportation service, announced an expansion throughout every county in Mississippi beginning today, August 18.
Uber, launched in 2010, allows people to book rides by using the Uber app on their smartphone.
The new areas the company now service include the Golden Triangle, Meridian and the Delta. Uber previously operated in Jackson, Gulfport-Biloxi, Hattiesburg and Oxford, according to a press release. 
Uber’s Mississippi General Manager Kasra Moshkani said the visitors and residents of the state ought to have reasonably priced transportation and flexible job opportunities. 
“Whether you need a safe ride home late at night or an early morning ride to the airport, you’ll be able to open the Uber app and simply tap a button,” Moshkani said. “If you are interested in earning money by driving with Uber on your own schedule, we encourage you to sign up on our website.”
In establishing a clear set of rules for ride-booking last year, the Mississippi legislature paved the way for Uber’s safe rides and earning opportunities to grow throughout the state.
“The Mississippi legislature believed in Uber,” Sen. Joey Fillingane (Sumrall) said. “We believe in a free market where Uber could freely provide excellent service throughout the state without the fear of burdensome overregulation. This announcement is proof our legislation worked.”
Starkville Mayor Lynn Spruill said she was not aware of Uber’s expansion to the area until last Tuesday night, and she did not have confirmation until she saw it on Facebook the next day.
She said the company is not required to get in touch with the city before establishing its services, but once she heard the news, she was enthusiastic.
“I’m excited that they are going to be here,” Spruill said. “ I think it will be very beneficial to my residents and citizens, particularly on game day. I think there are some real opportunities going on with them working out of Starkville.”
Spruill said the company has progressive, advanced services that will benefit the city through the use of modern-day technology. She said Uber “fits right in” with the young population attending Mississippi State University.
“Uber’s been in the headlines a lot, and it’s mostly in good ways, in the sense that they are offering a service that sometimes is much simpler, much quicker and much easier to access than your normal cab company,” she said. “So, I’m delighted that they have found that their business model works in our area.”
Those interested in driving on the Uber platform can sign up on the Uber website www.uber.com/signup/drive/us/.
To learn more about specific fares, visit uber.com/fare-estimate.
 Contact Katelyn Poe at [email protected].