Launched in California in 2010, Uber is the new way to hail a taxi, and has rapidly expanded to global success. The start-up company created a mobile app which allows people to use geo-location services in their mobile phone to find a nearby Uber driver and request a car to their location. The app also allows users to book a car for a specific time or an alternative location, making this one very nifty mobile tool.
Uber currently offers three different types of car which customers can select when they book a journey – each with its own starting price, minimum fare and distance meter rate.
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UberX for cheap, fast and reliable minicab services.
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UberEXEC for mid-range luxury and comfortable vehicles.
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UberLUX for luxury chauffeur style cars.
Uber now operates in over 100 cities in 30 countries worldwide, first launching in London in 2012, and has been rapidly gaining popularity in the UK.
Uber has been the subject of much controversy in recent days, with London cab drivers taking to the streets to strike in protest against the Uber service. London cabbies are claiming that the service is illegal, due to the similar metering system which can technically only be used by licensed hackney carriages. With over 3000 drivers now working for Uber in London, it’s clear that black cabs and private taxi firms stand to lose significant business. Uber have countered this somewhat by introducing an UberTAXI service which allows users to book and pay for a black cab using the service – however, black cabs still remain significantly more expensive than the UberX service they are now competing with.
Uber responded to the strikes, saying that London taxis are living in the dark ages and need to get with the times if they want to keep up with the competition. Uber’s service works via smartphone and allows users to pay by credit card – two major advancements in response to changing customer demand. “Londoners are voting with their fingers, tapping the app in support of new and innovative services as we see our biggest day of signups in London today since launch two years ago. In fact, today we’re seeing an 850 per cent increase in signups compared to last Wednesday. The results are clear: London wants Uber in a big way”. If you live in London, you can check out the Uber app in the iOS App store and on Google Play for Android.
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