COLORADO SPRINGS — Cheyenne Reiger is a DoorDash Driver in southern Colorado Springs, but her number-one goal when making deliveries in dangerous conditions is to get home to her 3-year old son safely each night.
"I almost wrecked yesterday cause somebody just kind of slipped right in front of me on a curve going to Star Ranch," said Reiger, reflecting on Tuesday evening when snow started falling.
Reiger says snowstorms bring a surge of food delivery orders.
"We basically just come out here to pay our bills."
However, Reiger says she and other food delivery drivers in Colorado Springs are frustrated with low tips and dangerous delivery conditions.
She posted in a community Facebook pages saying "TIP AND SHOVEL", reminding people ordering delivery to make sure their driveways are in a safe condition to walk on.
DoorDash drivers reserve the right not to deliver food to a doorstep if they feel it is too icy, and can report homes as being "unsafe".
The driver can also deny a request if they feel the tip is too small.
Reiger says she and other drivers believe the noticeable decrease in tips is a result of the pandemic.
"All the extra money people were getting has stopped and then a lot of people are not working as much anymore."
She says she is frequently asked why she is a full-time DoorDash driver if the conditions can be challenging.
"I had a whole 2 year gap in my employment, which I didn't think was a big gap until I started applying for jobs... And on top of that I have a kid that I would probably have to call out of work for."
CDOT still suggests anyone who does not have to be out on the roads stay off of them until conditions improve.
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