Dara Khosrowshahi, the Uber Boss… has come out and apologised.
Taking over, at Uber, for less than under a month, he said.. “On behalf of everyone at Uber globally, I apologise for the mistakes we’ve made.”
I’ve mentioned it before in my blog, and i’ll mention it again… Uber are not perfect.
They know internally they’ve got to made some improvements and they’ve said it in an open letter.
And that’s a great start – a bit like Alcoholics Anonymous (so i’ve heard) that the first step is, admitting something is not right.
From there, you have the support network and people that want you to get better… stop the drinking, go sober, enjoy life and work together.
I just feel though, that isn’t quite happening with Uber.
Yes, you might have heard, Transport for London are stripping them of their license to operate in London. What does this mean for the 3.5 million people who use Uber in London, but more importantly… the 40,000 licensed drivers for Uber?
Well.. i’d hope there’s be some conversations taking place… maybe someone who’s in charge of the TfL and Uber? – but then I read this…
Well, this just gets better and better.
The Mayor of London, and also, the chap responsible for the TfL is not prepared to meet Uber.
There’s me thinking, London was Open… for innovative companies to come and apply their trade. Obviously, they have to follow the laws and rules of the land, naturally. And if there’s something they don’t understand, they ask – and if they’re not doing it correctly or something is not right – they should be informed.
You wouldn’t think, it’d take 5 years… that’s correct. Uber has been operating in London Since 2012.
So is London open for Innovative companies?
Is it open to work together? Share, understand and collaborate?
David Leam, of London First which campaigns for business in the capital, said: “This will be seen as a Luddite decision by millions of Londoners and international visitors who use Uber, and will also hit London’s reputation as a global tech hub.”
That’s right – One minute we’re calling for the world to come and set up shop in London… bring your new technology and open hubs in London.
But then, on the other hand – we’re not really working with these tech companies, are we?
When traditional methods are challenged… is this what happens?
James Farrar, chairman of the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain’s United Private Hire Drivers branch, said “To strip Uber of its licence after five years of laissez-faire regulation is a testament to a systemic failure at TfL,”
All I’m hoping for is, there is a resolution and Uber is allowed to operate. Their mistakes are highlighted and they implement a plan of action to fix them.
If they are not compliant to certain rules and regulations, then these are highlighted to them and once again, they put in measures to ensure they are compliant.
Then this type of collaboration, between local governments, councils, transport boards, innovative tech companies, etc… can a) show the world – London is Open, but you got to work within the rules and we’ll help you… and b) don’t be afraid of change… let’s embrace it.
Saying all that… we’ll have self-driving cars soon, right? – wonder what the black cab drivers will say about that! Dare not ask right now 🙂