What the video shows
- The driver signs in and opens the home screen. The app is offline and isn't using location.
- The driver taps Go online. Android asks for location permission ("While using the app") and notification permission.
- A notification appears: Lift Driver - Online. This is the foreground service. It stays in the notification bar for as long as the driver is online.
- The driver leaves the app (home button). The notification is still showing, and the driver still gets new ride request alerts.
- The driver accepts a ride. The notification follows the trip: En route to pickup, Waiting for rider, Trip in progress, then Online again when the trip ends.
- The driver taps Go offline. The notification disappears, and the app stops using location.
Why Lift Driver needs it
Riders are matched with drivers who are online and nearby, and a rider follows their driver on the map during a trip. Drivers usually have a navigation app or a call in front of Lift, so the app has to keep sharing its location when it isn't on screen. Without the service, a driver who switches apps would vanish from the map and miss ride requests.
What the service does
- Every 20 seconds while the driver is online, it reads the phone's location once and sends it to Lift.
- It checks for new ride requests and for changes to the current trip (for example, the rider cancelling), and shows an alert.
- It only runs while the driver is online. It starts when the driver taps Go online in the app, and it stops when they tap Go offline or sign out.
- If Android closes the app during a trip, the service is started again the next time the driver opens Lift Driver, so the rider can keep following the trip.
- Lift Driver doesn't ask for "Allow all the time" location access, and it never uses location while the driver is offline.
The rider app, Lift, doesn't use location in a foreground service (see Lift: tracking your ride). For how location data is stored and shared, see our Privacy Policy.
