After disrupting the taxi industry, plans to welcome cabs onto the Uber platform are creating concerns for Uber drivers, cabdrivers and passengers as the service launches in San Francisco and New York before spreading elsewhere in the U.S.
Uber Technologies Inc. has made deals with the taxi industry that it disrupted more than a decade ago, which could bring cabs into the Uber app for some riders as soon as this spring.
Uber and its partners characterized the partnerships as a win-win for everyone involved. An Uber spokesman said Wednesday that the deals in the U.S. are part of a global plan that the company has been carrying out for the past several years, including in other countries such as Spain, Colombia and Hong Kong.
The partnerships could shore up Uber’s driver supply — which was affected by the pandemic, necessitating bonuses for drivers, at least for a while — but it is also sparking concerns among both cabdrivers and Uber drivers who are worried about how their earnings will be affected. As for Uber drivers, Hector Castellanos said he is somewhat concerned about how the deal would affect ride-hailing drivers like him because he doesn’t think there is enough demand for rides in San Francisco yet.
But he said “nothing will change” and that the deal is “just an additional source of ride demand for taxi drivers. We wouldn’t have done this type of partnership if we didn’t think this would strengthen position and income of our clients, the taxis.”