Uber’s licence in Cambridge extended

Students can breathe a sigh of relief – Uber will be around for at least five more years to get you back from your nights out.

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Earlier today, Cambridge City Council’s ‘Taxi Licensing Committee’ came to the decision that Uber’s licence will be extended for another five years. The announcement was met with a round of applause.

The committee had only received six complaints about Uber since it started operating in November 2016, five of these coming in during its first few days of operation, complaining about how bookings are made with Uber. The report the committee considered said  that “investigations carried out by the Licensing enforcement officers concluded that Uber was acting correctly.”

Panther Taxis Ltd (another student favourite) provided a letter objecting the renewal of Uber and Cambridge City Licensed Taxis and Cambridge Hackney & Private Hire Association (CHPHA) teamed up to write their own letter of objection.

This comes after Uber’s licence not being extended in both London and York. The decision was controversial and 856,232 people (at the time of writing) have signed a petition to bring back Uber to London.

During the forum issues such as the safety of passengers (both physical and online) and the employment status of drivers were discussed. In the end, it was decided to renew the Uber licence for another five years.

Fred Jones, Head of Cities for Uber UK said:”We’re delighted people in Cambridge can continue to use Uber. For both licensed drivers and passengers in the area, the app brings more choice and control. Passengers love being able to book a car at the touch of a button, track their vehicle on a live map and pay without cash. Licensed drivers partner with us because with Uber they can choose if, when and where they drive.”