New ride share app, GoKart, allows drivers to pick up children for parents

The ride sharing market has grown into a billion-dollar industry. With the click of a button, a person can get a driver to take them almost anywhere in their city or neighboring towns. Now a new app is on the market, and its focus is helping parents transport their children.

The GoKart rideshare app allows parents to book rides for their children, ages 6 to 17, with full information about the driver. Similar to Uber or Lyft, the user can request a particular driver and assign a destination through the app.

While most parents are drawn to the option of a helping hand, some said they don’t trust a stranger to drive their child alone to a destination.

“I do use Uber, but with kids you can’t be too careful, so I just wouldn’t trust it,” local parent Cheri Jones said.

“I’d be kind of leery, especially with the day and age,” local parent Treasa Larkin said. “It’s hard to trust exactly who’s taking your child.”

Action News Jax found that most of the drivers listed on the company’s website are mothers. It said each driver must complete an in-depth background check before they can begin driving. That detail changed the minds of some parents.

“As long as they were investigating the drivers and really researching them and making sure that they don’t have any kind of criminal history, then I would possibly consider it,” Larkin said.

The company also allows a parent to request a meeting with a driver before they book a ride for their child.

Currently, there are GoKart drivers in Charlotte, Houston, and Tampa. The company’s founder, Stacy Shannon recently announced plans to expand operations to Duval and St Johns counties.