Ola to Begin Operations in London as Uber's License Gets Revoked

A few days after the city of London revoked Uber'southward license to operate in the British capital, Indian ride-accumulation startup Ola has announced that information technology will begin operations in London in the "coming weeks".

The company is already working in parts of the UK, and said that it can currently service customers in 27 boroughs in the state. Ola recently secured an operating license from Transport for London, and has reportedly already started signing up drivers before information technology launches in the city. The company is planning on signing-up l,000 drivers to its fleet in London — a number larger than Uber's armada in the city.

In an attempt to incentivize drivers to sign-up for Ola, the company is reportedly offering them "favourable commissions" then drivers go to go on more of the money charged by Ola for rides. While the company hasn't revealed what share of the fare will exist given to the drivers in London, in India, the company's driver-partners get anywhere betwixt 70-74% of the ride-fare.

In a statement about the company's plans to expand into London, Ola's head of international operations, Simon Smith said, "we have had effective conversations with the authorities, drivers, and local communities in London over the by months, and look forward to contributing towards solving mobility issues in innovative and meaningful ways."

The visitor likewise highlighted some of the steps information technology volition take to ensure rider safety on its platform. The company said that it will bring safety features similar "commuter image verification confronting driving licence photographs", "robust technology systems to ensure that only licensed drivers complaint with TfL requirements can operate on the platform",a 24/7 helpline and an emergency button within the app to alert Ola'due south Rubber Response Team. The company likewise said information technology will utilize an industry first driver facial recognition system to continuously authenticate drivers on its platform.