Michele StuevenThere’s a lot riding on the passage of proposition 22, which will make app-based rideshare and delivery drivers independent contractors, and allow certain benefits including an earnings minimum and rest policies. On that note, finding a restroom when nature calls has become increasingly more difficult for delivery and rideshare drivers during the pandemic. Well, now there’s an app for that.
Although they’re busier than ever, gig workers have often been forced into degrading and embarrassing circumstances when they need to make a pitstop after hours on the road and numerous cups of coffee. The new Whizz App was made by gig workers for gig workers, in hopes that they can relieve themselves of the stress that comes with finding a restroom.
The Whizz App
The WaBa Grill, rice bowl chain has teamed up with The Whizz App co-founders Robert Logan and Keith Crudupt to provide subscribers with a google-styled map identifying pre-screened locations where drivers are permitted to use the bathroom facilities, no purchase necessary. Users of The Whizz App also get exclusive digital offers like 20 percent off a chicken bowl and drink at WaBa Grill.
“I was hanging out with some fellow Uber drivers when the subject of restrooms came up,” Crudupt tells L.A. Weekly. “Come to find out that all of us kept cups in our cars… and they weren’t for drinking. After talking to more drivers, I realized there was definitely a need for a service like The Whizz App. Now more than ever, drivers were complaining about not being able to find restrooms. ”
“We approached Waba Grill, and they loved the idea,” says partner Logan. “Specifically, they liked that The Whizz App would be able to serve essential workers at the height of the pandemic. They had a resource essential workers could use and were happy to join as our very first brand partner.”
WaBa Grill North Hollywood
Users of The Whizz App must display a designated screen on their mobile device to be granted restroom access at any WaBa Grill. Subscribers can also access exclusive digital coupons through the app which is available via download on Apple IOS and Android devices. The business model was created to help drivers “Find a restroom fast, no matter where you find yourself.”
“With dining rooms closed across the nation, both restaurants and consumers are more reliant on food delivery than ever, so it is not an overstatement to say that we owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the gig economy workers that enable delivery as an option for our industry,” said Mark Finnegan, VP Marketing & Technology at WaBa Grill in a statement. “When we were approached by The Whizz App team and learned the challenges delivery drivers experience daily, we knew that offering our restroom facilities at the nearly 200 WaBa Grill locations throughout Southern California was the least we could do.”
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