An Amish guy in Michigan has decided to finally join the rideshare economy—with his horse and buggy. According to WWMT, Tim Hochstedler has started offering taxi rides around his hometown of Colon in his horse-drawn carriage, which he has dubbed the “Amish Uber.” Rides are only $5, so way cheaper than most Uber rides in, you know, actual Ubers, but there’s a pretty big catch: You’ll have to flag him down on the street if you want a lift, since he isn’t exactly using the app.
Hochstedler isn’t officially affiliated with Uber, since he doesn’t have a phone and the service has yet to launch an official buggy option alongside Pool and XL or whatever, but the guy’s a savvy enough businessman to understand the power of branding.
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“Uber is a cool thing, every single year something new comes in and Uber is hot right now, so we have the Amish Uber. We can deliver people to their front door steps,” Hochstedler told WWMT.
“It was fascinating,” an Amish Uber rider named Bruce Jordan, visiting from Grand Rapids, told WWMT. “It’s not an activity you typically associate with the Amish.”
Hochstedler told the outlet that most of the people taking rides are from out of town, but some are locals who are just looking to get home. “Most of them aren’t from Colon, but the Colon people have given me a few options like: ‘Would you give me a ride to Curly’s? Would you go to my house?’ and, ‘Yeah I’d do that,’” Hochstedler went on.
Sure, a horse and buggy probably isn’t the most efficient way to get home from the bar after a night out with your friends, but if you find yourself in Michigan with an extra $5 and you’re in need of a ride, the Amish Uber is at least a unique way to go. And Hochstedler probably won’t try to pull that Uber vomit scam or accidentally drive you across three states, so that’s a plus.
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