“But the plans were on display…”
— The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
Arthur Dent’s problem was not that the plans didn’t exist.
The problem was that the people affected by them had no practical way of knowing about them.
We would prefer not to run transportation planning like the Vogons.
If your rideshare or delivery is delayed by a planned road closure, the driver may not have been given that information.
Universities, event venues, municipalities, and other organizations routinely plan road closures, traffic restrictions, temporary entrances, parking changes, and alternate routes days, weeks, or even months in advance.
Those plans may already be distributed to employees, students, residents, security personnel, police, event staff, or visitors.
But if that same information is not also communicated to the transportation and delivery platforms serving the property, drivers may not receive it.
That affects you, the customer.
Your Uber or Lyft driver may be routed toward a closed entrance.
Your DoorDash, Grubhub, Instacart, package, or other delivery driver may be sent down a road that has been intentionally blocked.
Your estimated arrival time may increase.
Your food or delivery may arrive later.
Your driver may have to travel additional miles, burn additional fuel, and repeatedly search for an entrance that is actually open.
And neither the customer nor the driver caused the problem.
Drivers should not be expected to discover planned closures one barricade at a time.
Drivers are operating motor vehicles.
They should not have to stop in traffic, handle a phone, search websites, download PDFs, or report planned road closures through an app while actively transporting passengers or completing deliveries.
Unexpected emergencies are different.
A fallen tree, crash, emergency utility repair, or sudden police closure cannot always be communicated beforehand.
But football games, move-in days, commencements, concerts, construction projects, and other scheduled events are known in advance.
When an organization already knows:
- which roads will be closed,
- when those closures begin,
- when they end,
- which entrances remain open,
- which routes should be used,
- and where passengers or deliveries should go,
that information should also be shared with the companies and mapping systems being used to bring customers onto the property.
This is not about blaming an institution.
It is about improving communication.
The people planning these events already have the information.
We are simply asking that the information be shared with all of the parties who need it, including rideshare and delivery platforms.
If you experienced a delay because your driver was routed toward a planned closure or incorrect entrance, please contact the organization responsible for the property and ask:
“Are planned road closures and temporary traffic routes being communicated directly to rideshare, delivery, and navigation platforms before the event?”
You are their customer.
You are also our customer.
Better communication between the organizations planning these closures and the platforms providing transportation and delivery means:
Less confusion.
Less wasted fuel.
More accurate arrival estimates.
Faster pickups.
Faster deliveries.
Safer drivers.
Better service for everyone.
Planned information should be shared before it becomes a roadside surprise.
Please encourage universities, venues, municipalities, and event organizers to coordinate planned traffic changes with rideshare and delivery platforms in advance.