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Uber chose the Science Museum in London to launch the 2024 installment of its annual climate event, Go-Get Zero, which has highlighted the firm’s commitment to electrifying its fleet – including some new ways to tempt you into riding its EVs.
Alongside affirmation of its autonomous ride-hailing projects, which include Waymo and its recent tie-in with Hyundai, Uber’s CEO Dara Khosrowshahi explained that despite the global slowing of EV adoption, the company’s drivers were adopting electric vehicles five-times faster than the average motorist.
Four years ago, when Uber first set its lofty climate targets and introduced Uber Green, there were just 10,000 EV drivers on the platform. There are now 182,000 globally and there have been more than half a billion zero emissions trips in Europe alone.
However, the company says there is still much work today and sees itself as a key player in mass EV adoption in general, citing that many EV owners had their first interaction with an electric vehicle via an Uber ride.
Uber Green, which is the platform’s section reserved exclusive for drivers of electric and hybrid vehicles, will become electric-only from today in more than 40 markets around the world, including France, Australia and the major cities in the USA.
To entice Uber users to "go green", the company has made a number of changes to its app that both encourage and incentivize both riders and drivers to choose the electric option.
1. EV Preference
Uber wants to take the decision-making process out of either plumping for the closer but more emissions-heavy UberX and the slightly further away Uber Green ride – seeing as the two now cost largely the same.
You'll be able to toggle an EV Preference setting that will automatically match with an EV anytime one is nearby.
If the difference between Green and UberX is only a couple of minutes, the app will automatically opt for the EV alternative. However, if the software deems the wait is too long, it will select the closest UberX instead.
2. You could ride in a Lotus or a Rivian
Part-publicity stunt and part-brand tie-in, Uber has announced its EV Pop-ups program, which will see a number of 'premium EVs' scattered across key cities, available at certain times for users to select and costing a similar amount to Uber Black SUV trips.
In London, Uber has partnered with Lotus and app users will be able to select a new Lotus Eletre as their premium EV ride. In LA, Miami and Dallas, that sleek EV of choice will be Rivian’s R1 electric SUV. But it's only available between October 14 and 21, so get in fast.
There is no word on the number of models riding around each city at any given moment, nor is there a figure on the likelihood of snaring one. But that’s all part of the fun, isn't it?
3. Real-time CO2 savings
The Uber app will undergo a number of small design changes that could make selecting the Uber Green option a little bit more exciting. The timeline as you wait for a car to arrive will look like a pice of ivy, complete with bursting shoots, for example, while there are a number of new animations that celebrate the fact a user has chosen the green option.
But more importantly, users will soon be able to see how much CO2 they have saved during and after a journey is complete. This figure adds up over time and will display on the home screen, while CO2 savings made by using Uber's many eBikes, scooters and even ride-sharing programs will all count.
During the GO-GET Zero event, Sachin Kansal, product manager and bonafide Uber driver, announced that the rider in London who clocks up the highest emissions saving from now until the end of November will get free Uber rides for ten years.
4. There will be many more Uber Green cars available
Alongside rewarding Uber riders, the company says it's making it a lot easier for its drivers to make the switch to EV. It has developed an AI assistant within the driver’s area of its app that will answer myriad questions surrounding EV ownership.
If speaking to a robot isn’t good enough, the company will also pair hesitant buyers up with one of its many 'EV Mentors' – or those Uber drivers that have been driving electric for years.
Naturally, there will also be plenty of subsidies and incentives, such as big discounts on the purchase of new EVs, a huge reduction in the cost of using the public charging network, help with installing chargers at home – including 1,000 free home chargers for UK drivers thanks a tie-in with Octopus energy.
5. BYD will be the Uber car of choice in the UK and Europe
The company stated that it is partnering with BYD to help it speed up the number of 'more affordable' electric vehicles it can offers its drivers, and therefore speed up the rate at which Uber Green expands over time.
That said, the company didn’t go into detail about partnership opportunities in the USA, as presumably BYD would be very much off the cards there, seeing as the US government has imposed huge import taxes on Chinese-made EVs and will potentially impose an outright ban on a anything sporting Chinese technology.