Uber, ever since their beta launch in 2010, have been making huge profit all over the world with their ride-hailing services. As technology rises, so does the company as they are testing several autonomous vehicles for their services in San Francisco. They also launched a fleet of electric cars in Madrid in an attempt to help Spain improve their fuel economy.
Uber Was Banned From Spain, Returns With UberX
Two years ago, the services of Uber was banned in Spain after a judge ruled out that Uber drivers did not hold professional drivers licenses and that the service is creating unfair competition to the city's local taxi drivers. By using private vehicles for revenue and having amateur drivers operate the ride-sharing services, Uber was not complying with the local laws. Uber finally returned to Spain with UberX in April.
UberX drivers are already using professional licenses in order to comply with the law. Uber still has restrictive licenses issued to their drivers in Madrid that disrupt the expansion of the company in the city. They are hoping that their launching of environmentally friendly vehicles can lead the way to have more freedom in the car-sharing industry.
Uber Attempts To Gain Popularity With The Mayor
Uber could not choose a better timing in returning to Spain since the current mayor, Manuela Carmena, is known as an environment advocate. Uber attempts to gain the favor of the mayor by using electric vehicles, or some call green cars, as a means of transporting their passengers. The administration recently announced protocols and guidelines for the citizens to combat pollution in the city, improve traffic and speed limits on the central business district and on access roads.
Tesla May Have Already Tied Up With Uber
Surprisingly, Uber dispatched a fleet of Tesla electric vehicles. There were no known tie-ups between the two companies since Tesla previously announced that they do not intend to have their vehicles used for public transportation. A statement from Tesla says that Uber or Lyft, another ride-hailing service company, is not allowed to employ their cars for their business. In addition, the company website states that using a Tesla car to share with friend and family is fine, but not allowed to be used for revenue.
Uber Have A Lot Of Potentials And Competitors
What is more surprising is that Uber was reportedly losing its momentum as other services like BMW's ReachNow ride-haling program are slowly emerging. The company is also taking a big risk when they started buying a fleet of Volvo CX90 sports utility vehicles and fitted it with autonomous hardware and software. The purchase was done without any real proof that it would be a success, unlike BMW who did not have to spend extra since they already own the vehicles that they are using for the ReachNow program.
Uber may onto something here; the company may be taking a huge risk as they step forward to using expensive electric and autonomous vehicles for their ride-hailing services. But, as long as they keep the environment clean, keep unnecessary costs to a minimum, and exceed their passenger expectations, then they can rest assure that they will go a long way in the industry and will continue to gain support from the government and the consumers.
