Uber brings water taxis to Muskoka for Victoria Day long weekend

If you have a few drinks at a lakeside cottage over the long weekend, it could be as easy as calling a cab to get back home — by boat — safely and responsibly.  

Uber, the popular smartphone cab app in more than 70 cities, is extending its service to Muskoka over the Victoria Day long weekend in an effort to expand their business and help curb drinking and boating.

“We want to bring this amazing experience to Muskoka and hopefully in the process make it a safer weekend as well,” Ian Black, general manager with Uber, told Metro Morning Friday.

Uber already exists — on land — in more than 70 cities. Clients simply plug in their information on their mobile and request a taxi pickup, which is then billed to their credit card and corresponding account. There's no need to take money out after the ride.

This latest venture, UberBOAT — in partnership with Summer Water Sports (SWS), will work in a similar way. Users will input their information and then call the drivers about their exact dock location. 

“The great advantage [of this app] is that normally a water taxi in Muskoka, if you can find one, is about $150,” Black said. “We’re doing $1 per minute and the average ride we’re expecting is about 20-30 minutes."

$1 per minute

Five boats will be operating on Lake Joe and Lake Rosseau starting at 5 p.m  and running until 1 a.m. Friday to Sunday with the same schedule on every other long weekend this summer.

“If we see a lot of demand this weekend, we’ll continue to add more and more water taxis,” Black said.

Uber also warns that this is the first weekend of water taxi service and so, according to their blog, it will be a “learning experience” for them as well.

Occupants will be expected to wear life jackets after dark and only sealed alcohol can be brought board.