Sarita Baruch (Head of Grecce, Uber): Our vision to become a ‘one-stop-shop’ for the movement of citizens

The head of Uber in Greece talks about the next day of the move, the need for a new ridesharing framework and the emphasis that the company places on its cooperation with taxis.

– Recently, in your participation in an online conference and in fact in the presence of the Secretary General of Transport, you mentioned the need to create a new framework for on demand transportation services. How do you attribute this need and how do you perceive this context?

The European Commission has recently issued specific views on the mobility regime and related services. To be precise, the EU supports the development of a common framework for all mobility options. This initiative comes at a time when the Ministry of Transport has announced that it is working on similar legislation. But it is not just the Commission’s intention that makes this change imperative. A new framework is necessary because the technological developments of the time and especially the needs of the people demand it. We urgently need a framework that meets our new data and mobility needs. We urgently need a transition to a new model, with two key features: It should not disrupt the functioning of the market, but it should encourage citizens to use more ridesharing services than their own cars.

Most EU countries are choosing or have already chosen a reform that enhances on-demand mobility, such as ridesharing. And they do it because they see the significant growth momentum that is being created, and obviously because the citizens themselves are highlighting this need. The focus is on the benefits of the citizens themselves – in our case users on demand. For example, Italy tabled a reform, Belgium announced an urgent reform and Germany activated the reform it introduced last year.

– The operation of the market today is also linked to the taxi market. Will not this market be affected by the change of context?

The significant benefits of such a framework for the economy, employment and growth apply primarily to taxis. We cooperate with the industry and in fact with significant growth rates. Through our cooperation, the service itself is improved, as well as the experience of moving on demand. At Uber internationally, from 2019 onwards we have significantly increased our cooperation with the industry. In fact, we recently announced that it is our strategic priority to increase our cooperation with taxis worldwide, setting the ambitious goal of cooperating with all taxis worldwide by 2025. In our view, the need to move to a new context obviously must ensures that taxis can seize the opportunities of the digital revolution.

In fact, based on our experience worldwide and the image we have of the Greek market, ridesharing services will immediately create a significant additional passenger base, with the taxi market benefiting primarily from it. To be precise, we expect it to strengthen. At the same time, the benefits to employment and the economy are also significant.

Let me also tell you this: 2/3 of the users of applications such as Uber use our services, in combination with public transport, as an alternative to using a private car. With a 10 percent reduction in car ownership or more properly in everyday use, demand will be doubled by commuting to other modes of mobility. Technology will therefore help us meet significant challenges, boost the economy, employment, entrepreneurship and improve the quality of life in cities. We generally need reliable combination, comfortable solutions. For many commutes, it may be faster or cheaper to get an electric bike, electric scooter or public transport. Uber’s new mobility platform provides these reliable and affordable alternatives to car use. The ability to use such solutions can coexist in the Uber application. This is, after all, part of our vision. To be a one-stop-shop for the citizens. We want to give them access to every option that helps them move around the city comfortably.

– Are there examples of such services?

Uber Transit service is available in many cities in the US and Europe such as Rome. There in the Uber application we have integrated the services of electric scooters and electric bicycles of Lime. In London we have integrated the possibility of providing services by boat, the Uber Boat. In New York there is also the Uber Copter for helicopter transport in the application. What we call multimodal is already a reality, it is evolving and will continue to evolve rapidly. Both our desire and our goal is in the changes that are coming so that no one is left behind. We have to run forward together, all together.

– To come to Greece as well. The Uber platform is already available in Athens, Thessaloniki, while last year you launched a new service in Santorini. Can we expect the model of Santorini in other areas as well?

Last year was a year of growth for us. Our UberTaxi service has proven to be very successful especially in Athens and we want to continue investing in it, in other cities in Greece, such as Thessaloniki, but also in other European countries. UberTaxi is a clear example of successful collaboration between a technology application like ours and an existing service such as taxis, bringing benefits to both consumers and taxis. Our goal is to continue to invest in this service to make it more affordable, reliable and valued by consumers on a daily basis, creating more income opportunities for taxi drivers. On the other hand, last year, a pilot operation was launched in Santorini with a Greek mediation company that uses the technology of our platform and this cooperation proved to be successful. Regarding future plans of our overall presence in Greece, I am not able to announce any specific expansion at this stage, however our main goal remains the geographical expansion and availability of the Uber application in more parts of Greece.

– The Ministry recently announced the financing of electric taxis through the Recovery Fund. How does Uber perceive such initiatives and how does it support them?

He perceives them absolutely positively, he stars in the global transition in the green and of course he has been supporting them steadily for years. At Uber we have already announced our commitment to become a zero-emission mobility platform by 2040, in 10,000 cities and six continents in which it operates. We are committed to 100% of travel on zero-emission vehicles, public transport and micro-mobility across the global platform. In fact, in Europe, which is a leader in electric vehicles, we believe that we can become a platform for zero emissions much faster, by 2030. By the end of 2025, 50% of the kilometers traveled in a total of seven European capitals – Amsterdam, Berlin , Brussels, Lisbon, London, Madrid and Paris – will be in zero-emission vehicles.

As far as drivers are concerned, of course, access to economical electric vehicles is essential. They also need reliable access to overnight charging at or near their home. In the meantime, additional policies may be needed to fill the cost gap that drivers face when making the change. We are therefore pleased to see a willingness for such policies in Greece. By the way, I remind you that Uber supports the transition to electric vehicles worldwide by investing more than 800 million dollars. This is a huge program to support drivers to switch to zero-emission vehicles by 2025.