Taxi Driver Online

Taxi app Uber set for Glasgow & Edinburgh launch


The US firm uses a smartphone app to connect passengers with vehicles, which could cut fares by about a third.

Uber confirmed yesterday it has applied for a licence to operate in Glasgow as well as having applied for one in Edinburgh, and is recruiting staff.

However, the company was unable to say when the services would start.

One of Edinburgh’s two largest taxi firms said it was not concerned by the move but an expert said operators could lose up to 40 per cent of their business.

The news comes hard on the heels of the launch of a black cab booking app, GetTaxi, in Edinburgh.

Uber, which already operates in London, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester, has sparked fears in other countries about the lack of regulation of drivers and vehicles.

It switched to licensed drivers in Germany after being banned in Berlin and was temporarily banned in New Delhi after a woman accused a driver in the Indian capital of rape.

Cabbies brought central London to a standstill last summer over the way Uber fares are calculated.

However, Uber’s UK regional general manager, Jo Bertram, said: “All drivers have the same licences as private hire drivers, with an enhanced criminal records check and medical check.”

She said passengers could use the Uber app to see how close the nearest vehicle was, book a journey and pay the fare.

Ms Bertram declined to give rates but said Uber would aim to provide the “best value for money”.

She said around three staff would initially be recruited in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Uber employs up to 50 in London.

Aberdeen could be a future target for Uber, she suggested, but said it would take expansion “one step at a time”.

James Cooper, professor of urban transport regulation at the University of Missouri-St Louis, urged passengers to be cautious. Prof Cooper, who is on sabbatical from Edinburgh Napier University, said: “If a vehicle is licensed correctly, they have no problems – but how do passengers know?”

He said fares could be 30 per cent cheaper and existing operators stood to lose 20-40 per cent of their business.

Central Taxis, Edinburgh’s biggest black cab firm along with City Cabs, said the capital already had good taxi provision.

Director Tony Kenmuir said: “We cannot ignore an organisation like Uber when it is making headlines all over the world.

“However, we have reviewed the market in Edinburgh and the public is very well served by the taxi trade. There is a relatively high number of taxis for the size of population, and one of the newest fleets in the UK.”

Mr Kenmuir added: “I do not see a clear cut market for Uber here as standards are so high and vehicles are readily available.”

Glasgow Taxis, the city’s largest operator, urged passengers to stick with established operators.

Vice-chair Stephen Flynn said: “When booking a taxi, the only way to ensure a fully licensed and disclosed vehicle and driver is to use a recognised company.

“Third-party systems can’t guarantee the same level of regulation and, when passenger safety should be absolutely paramount, that is concerning.”

An Edinburgh City Council spokeswoman said: “We can confirm Uber has lodged an application for a booking office in central Edinburgh. The applicant and any objectors will have the chance to present their case before a decision is made.”

A Glasgow City Council spokesman said: “We can confirm an application for a taxi booking office has been received [and] will be considered in due course.”

http://www.scotsman.com/news/transport/ ... -1-3700670

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Nothing new there Captain, we know what's coming

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Alway's been about Tightening the Grip!

No response from Athol Towers the illustrious Les been gagged by any chance Mr Kenmuir made a fair point .

Here I'll tell you what, the powers at be are shi**ing themselves. Oh and you know, if I was a complete madman I just might get an East Lothian Ph licence and work Edinburgh with my Uber app.

I bet you on a Friday and Saturday night you would be rushed off your feet.

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All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

Remember and give me a wave if your not too busy.

Aye right enough, you'll be out driving your taxi and not sitting in the office drinking cups of coffee and eating gypsy creams. There might not be a City Cabs office?

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All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

Just a City Cabs App
No need for a booking office or a booking office licence and we can put our fees up to 20% commission on each job. Happy days.

Aye but now you are just an app company, competing against global billion dollar app companies, it's game over me auld china...

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All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

I've been taking a look at Uber and looking into the attraction of them by punters, it appears that by booking by App is a plus but there pricing strategy seems to be the main attraction, punters are lured in by the promise of low fares, they sign up and a requirement is signing up with all their information including their bank details, at times of low demand the can fix price fares low and at times of high demand they price surge 3 times higher than the discount they give at times of low demand, example, normal fare £20, discount 25% at times of low demand, discounted fare £15, they could go lower,.
At times of high demand that normal fare of £20 surges to £35, that's a surge of 75%, it doesn't stop there, it could go higher, they get away with this strategy because they call their App a Rideshare App, Taxis like ours are regulated, we have to use a meter and a set Tarrif set by our local authorities, our trade is at a disadvantage, if companies like Uber have the freedom to charge what they like, we have no chance, the funny thing is it's not wrong to price surge, Hotels, Airlines etc all price surge due to demand, we don't, we can't, we should

If it's good enough for Uber it should be good enough for us, if an LA gives Uber a licence to do this then our Trade should be afforded equal rights, if an LA refuses our trade but allows Uber then that's unfair competition, a breach of the law, it could be argued by our trade that unless Uber operate under existing pricing regulation per LA, if unwilling to do so, then on those grounds they should be denied a licence to operate,

In my opinion our trade has to evolve depending on LA regulation, if they allow Uber to operate their pricing as is, we should demand the same, What i believe is the best way forward is we put pressure on our LA to enforce pricing regulation on the likes of Uber, make price surging illegal in a Ridesharing enviroment, highlighting the fact it's open to abuse, it's profiteering to the extreme, it's not like price surging in other sectors, if they are allowed to operate set fares dependent on demand, the whole trade must wake up and demand the same right to set fares dependent on demand, every individual operator must lobby their LA for the right to set fares, let's take them on playing there own game, it's also a good thing to operate an alternative App that works within an existing circuit, it's also good to highlight experiance over inexperiance, knowledge over Sat Nav.

Open to ridicule, feel free

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Alway's been about Tightening the Grip!

Are you advocating we price our services depending on demand.
Will that work both ways.

You could really do with working on your quips, Tarrif 4gate is so Yesterday

But if it's good enough for Uber its good enough for me

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Alway's been about Tightening the Grip!

It'll mean we as a company use our knowledge of what is a fair price

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Alway's been about Tightening the Grip!

The girl from get taxi was out again tonight spoke to her at the Balmoral rank , say's recruiting new members is going well she has persuaded a few CRT, CITY and COMCAB to try it out , not had any complaints yet and they will continue to monitor the system , down south are happy with the way things are going , asked how I was finding it I've done 6 jobs and happy with it so far the test will come Fri and Sat night .

https://www.uber.com/cities

Have a look at the above you pair of lunatics... City Cabs is but a speck of dust blowing in a billion dollar wind....

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All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

If any company of local taxi drivers thinks we 'the trade' can go head to head with the likes of Uber they are in cloud cuckoo land.
We will get well and truly shafted.
Imploding within our own trade for a start!

Setting fair prices to win the trade!
Are we having a laugh?

Deregulation ?
Have we learned nothing in the last 30 yrs.

Punter doesn't win and trade doesn't win!

There has been a lot of personal stuff on here and for the most part it's no place for thin skins.
There are personal dislikes too, c'est la vie!

Start taking the constructive out of others viewpoints and looking inwardly with an objectiveness that puts the common good to the fore and the taxi trade just might do well out of storm.