Uber launches electric option in London at no additional cost

Uber Green in London will give passengers in Zone 1 the opportunity to request an electric vehicle at no additional cost. 

The trip will cost the same as a regular UberX journey on the app and drivers will get a higher fare per trip. 

It is the recent initiative the company has taken as it pushes to become a wholly electric platform by 2025 in London and throughout the UK by 2030. 

In 2019 the company introduced the Clean Air Plan whereby the company collects additional 15 pence per mile for every mile travelled in London. It then goes directly to drivers to support them with the cost of switching to an electric automobile.

Over £125 million ($172 million) has been raised so far with more than 3 million trips taking place in a fully electric vehicle. 

In December Uber rival Bolt declared it was launching a £250,000 ($344,243) fund to transition its London-based drivers to electric vehicles. 

“With cities beginning to open up once again, we have once in a lifetime opportunity to drive a green recovery by ensuring that every car on the Uber app in London is fully electric,” said Jamie Heywood, Uber’s regional general manager for Northern and Eastern.

“We continue to partner with drivers to help them make the switch to electric and today we are excited to start offering riders the option to select an electric vehicle at no extra cost, allowing everyone using Uber to play their part in cleaning up urban transport.” 

Uber said by the end of 2020 the new initiative will be live in 60 significant European cities and available in 1,400 US areas.