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Uber is planning to launch UberPool, its service that provides rides for much cheaper by allowing passengers to share journeys, in London in the coming months despite threatened limits on ridesharing.
Andrew Byrne, Uber's Head of Public Policy in the UK and Ireland said that Uber is hoping to launch "a major new product called UberPool" in London within the next few months, which will match riders and drivers going in the same direction, and allow people to share a ride.
"We want to end car ownership in London," he told the Parliamentary committee at the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee inquiry into the digital economy.
Uber, whose growth in London has sparked widespread protests from the black cab industry, is facing questions over its future in London afterTransport for London proposed new restrictions on minicab services.
In particular, the restrictions suggest "controls on ridesharing in public vehicles" which would block UberPool in London completely. Uber's chief executive Travis Kalanick has previously said a £21 black taxi trip with UberPool would cost just £6.
The ride-sharing service already runs in cities including Paris, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Boston, with Indian city Bengaluru being themost recent addition to the list.
TfL is consulting on 25 proposals for private hire companies - several of which could seriously affect Uber:
1. Operators "must provide booking confirmation details to the passenger at least five minutes prior to the journey"
Uber matches passengers with the nearest riders, meaning they are picked up in, on average, three minutes.
2. Companies "must not show vehicles being available for immediate hire either visibly or virtually via an app"
One of Uber's key features is a map of available drivers in the area around the passenger.
3. Operators "must offer a facility to pre-book up to seven days in advance" This option that would create major headaches for Uber, since it does not allow passengers to pre-book rides.
4. Drivers may only work for one operator at a time
Uber says many of its drivers are part-time workers whose main employer is a traditional minicab firm.
5. There should be "controls on ridesharing in public vehicles"
Uber's chief executive Travis Kalanick has said he wants to bring the UberPool service to London, which allows several customers to share a car.
Mr Byrne, along with Alex Depledge, chief executive of on-demand cleaning startup Hassle and Ben Williams, Head of Operations at AdBlockPlus, gave evidence this morning at the inquiry, which was looking into the impact of disruptive digital technologies on the UK.
He strongly defended the minicab app service in Parliament against accusations of leading a "race to the bottom", saying, "The idea that a lower price means lower quality of service just isn’t correct."
Talking about UberPool, he said, "That is technology revolutionising an industry, with far-reaching consequences on how people get around."
"We can reduce congestion, by transporting more people in fewer cars. I don’t think that represents a race to the bottom."
In a direct challenge to Mr Byrne, Richard Massett, Chairman of the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, who was also a witness at the inquiry, said he wasn't "scared of Uber." His biggest problem with services like Uber was the congestion they caused, he claimed.
"10 years ago, 1 in every 100 vehicles was a private hire in London; that’s now 1 in 10," he said. "In April 2013, there were just under 50,000 private hire cars, that’s now 91,000."
Responding to accusations by the committee of being a "seedy backstreet minicab firm", Mr Byrne pointed to the app's role in the UK digital economy.
"We have 20,000 driver-partners in the city of London," he said. "If we were a steel plant that had created 20,000 new job opportunities, people would be applauding the service."
By Madhumita Murgia
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Grandad,
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