Uber aims to turn everyday commuters into taxi driversCompany trialling scheme that will enable private motorists to become temporary Uber drivers with the touch of a button on their phone
Any motorist will be able to become an Uber driver on their daily commute with the simple touch of a button on their phone, according to the company's chief adviser.
David Plouffe said the aim was to make the controversial taxi-sharing app, which is locked in a perpetual battle with black cabbies, accessible to private drivers by allowing them to use its technology to ferry about strangers whenever it was convenient.
"Our goal is eventually you don't even think about becoming an Uber driver, that you say I'm going to do this when I'm running errands or running to the airport, I'll just make a little bit of money," he said.
"Think about that. I'm not an Uber driver per-say, but on those ten times a week when I'm driving to work I'll press the button on my phone and if there's someone in my neighbourhood I'll take them in.
"It won't work the same in terms of price, it'll be less expensive, but we think that's a huge potential benefit."
The scheme, called UberCommute, is being trialled in Chicago and Chengdu, China.
Uber checks the driver’s license and driving record of anyone who wants to offer a ride and the cost is said to be cheaper than UberPool, which allows up to three strangers to share one of its cars and save money on the standard fare.
Plouffe rejected criticism, voiced by London mayor Boris Johnson among others, that services such as Uber increased congestion and insisted that the company was "filling a void" between the desire to travel and modern technology.
If users could reliably jump in a cab within minutes of pressing a button on their phones, it would reduce personal car use, congestion on the roads and the vast space taken up by car parks in the world's cities, he said.
"You have over a million cars coming into central London every day, almost all those cars have one person in them. If we can turn that into something that's more efficient it'll have a huge impact," he told Radio 4's Today programme.
"Our big goal is to make it easier for people tp reduce personal car use. And the big pay off is never buy a car.
"Parking takes up 16 per cent of the space in the world's cities. You could get to the point where you could reclaim some of that space for parks, businesses, schools."
Plouffe said the company was bridging a gap in the market for young people.
"There are two trends going on," he added. "One is, we are going to see a pace of urbanisation unlike the globe has ever seen before.
"Secondly, young people want to move around the world, they don't want to be tied down. Social life now revolves around smart phones so we are helping to fill a void here.
"That's why we are trying to get the wait times down. It has to be as easy to get an Uber as it it to pick up your keys and start your car."
Uber has been accused of exploiting drivers by taking 20 per cent of fares and promoting zero-hour contracts.
Since its launch in 2012, the California-based company has been loathed by black cab drivers who have been undercut by the smartphone app.
Uber drivers are licensed for minicabs, which must be prebooked, but the app allows users to hail a car within minutes, competing with black cabs' right to be hired on the street.
Transport for London is preparing to launch a crackdown on Uber, proposing a series of new rules including a minimum five-minute wait time between ordering a private hire vehicle and it arriving. It will unveil its plans in the new year.
source:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/1 ... ivers.html
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