You’re probably well aware of the Uber luxury car service that has been available in New York, London and a number of other cities progressively since 2010, but today the company launched its less flashy new service, UberX, in London following its introduction in New York, San Francisco and Boston.
Uber brought chaffeur-driven top-of-the-line Mercedes, Jags and BMWs, to London a little over a year ago. Now UberX offers a more moderate, meaning cheaper, ride around town.
The new service uses car sharing to compete with other minicab firms such as Addison Lee and the iconic London black cab. Specifically, it says Addison Lee costs 40 percent more, and a black cab 30 – 50 percent more than its new UberX option, depending on the tariff.
Its roughly five mile example across town (Gresham Street, EC2V to Kensington Church Street, W8 for the London-dwellers) would cost just £13 in an UberX car, £25.20 in an Addison Lee and just under £30 in a black cab.
Ryan Graves, Head of Operations at Uber, said: "Our team is grinding around the clock to get more cars on the road.”
(More cars, more traffic, more congestion)
It seems, thanks to help from TfL's Taxis and Private Hire, getting those cars on the road is a little easier in London than it has been in other areas it already operates, such as New York, Los Angeles or San Francisco.
How does UberX achieve such low prices?
Not just a stranger with a car, but ride with a stranger:
Some cities have already banned it, seemingly because it operates more like a ride-sharing service – essentially a paid-for lift with a stranger – than a traditional taxi service.
“Getting our initial license to operate UberLux had some hurdles, but actually, we’ve found London’s TfL [Transport for London] to be the most progressive regulatory system we’ve worked with. We don’t anticipate any red-tape in the launch of UberX,” Graves said. ”In London our UberX cars will be licensed and drivers will be PCO [Public Carriage Office] registered by TfL."
Users of the Uber app will be familiar with using UberX, well, because it’s done within the same app. Simply swipe across the screen to switch between UberLux and UberX.
With controversy never seeming too far away for Uber, the launch of UberX in London is another milestone in its journey but with Graves confident with the help recieved from TfL, red-tape won’t stand in its way. Uber looks set on digging its heels in deep and taking on the minicabs, Addison Lees and black cabs of London.
It will be interesting to see if any sexual attack or rape of a passenger, by another passenger will or will not be included in the minicab related sexual assault statistics.