Uber Will Reportedly Launch Its Shuttle Bus Service In India

Uber has been quite busy lately solving issues with riders and driver partners in India, and at the same time, testing the subscription model for discount on eats, scooters, and rides in the US.

For India, it is believed that the ride-hailing company has its eye on the bus services and mass transportation system in general.

According to Pradeep Parameswaran, head of Uber in India and South Asia, the company was developing the product, which has already been applied in some parts of the Middle East and Latin America.

Parameswaran said that Uber planned to launch the service within one year in India. The shuttle bus service first appeared in Cairo in October. It lets users reserved a seat on an air-conditioning bus via the Uber app. The best route with minimum stops will also be provided to passengers.

Uber is still in the process of finding out if the model is suitable to be introduced in India. Parameswaran said that the number of people who were able to afford traveling on an air-conditioning car twice a day is rather limited.

Technology for transportation in India is a new sector appealing to investors. According to The State of The Indian Startup Ecosystem 2018 report of Inc42, the country has 513 tech startups in transportation, and during the 2014-2018 period, the segment has pulled in $3.3 with 135 deals.

Apart from cabs, the market now has shuttle bus services, e-bikes, and rental two-wheelers. Uber’s bus service will put it in head-to-head competition with Shuttl, a bus shuttle service. The startup claimed that it had 80% of its business from NCR/Delhi, and provided around sixty thousand rides per day.