Oct 8 (Reuters) - Lyft ( LYFT ) said on Tuesday it would

improve earnings for drivers on its platform by paying more for

going out of their way for a ride and for those that are at

least five minutes longer than estimated.

The ride-hailing firm would also roll out new tools such as

a new earnings dashboard, "preferred drivers" getting more

requests and the ability for electric-vehicle drivers to get

matched with rides that fall within their battery range.

"We have about 1.3 million or so drivers over the last year

that have been on the platform. We've seen pretty tremendous

growth year over year ... Our goal is to continue to grow that,"

Jeremy Bird, EVP of driver experience at Lyft ( LYFT ), told Reuters.

In the three months ended June, Lyft ( LYFT ) saw the most new

drivers in any quarter since 2019, including 34% more women and

non-binary drivers compared to the same period a year earlier.