At one time, when you needed to get from point A to point B, you had limited options. If you didn’t drive your car or ride a bicycle, you could either walk, take a cab or perhaps use public transportation. In today’s world, services such as Uber and Lyft have really changed things. You no longer need to have a car or rely on public transportation to get where you’re going. Just open an app on your phone, request a ride and before you know it, you are where you need to be.
A man in Michigan has created a service that is similar to Uber. The difference is, he picks people up in a horse-drawn buggy. His name is Timothy Hochstedler and his service, Amish Uber, is based in Colon, Michigan. It should be noted that he is not affiliated with the ridesharing company and he openly admits it. He just likes the name.
“Uber is a cool thing, every single year something new comes in and Uber is hot right now, so we have the Amish Uber,” Hochstedler told WWMT. “We can deliver people to their front doorsteps.”
The price for this door to door service is only five dollars. He doesn’t use any different forms of modern technology, such as an automobile so you can’t use an app to order your Amish Uber. All you need to do is flag one down, just as you would flag down a taxi.
These rides are only offered on the weekends for now but business is growing quickly. Customers are both locals and those out of town.
“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,” he explained of people’s reaction to his service.
Abbott’s Magic Company is located in Colon, Massachusetts and that little town is known as the “Magic Capital of the World.” The founders of the company hold an annual magician convention and have done so since the 1930s. The first horse-drawn Uber can now be added to their fame as well.
It may take a little while to get where you’re going when you accept a ride on a horse and buggy, but most people consider it to be well worth it. In fact, people will pay top dollar for a similar ride in a metropolitan area.