Controversial taxi competitor Uber will continue to advertise for South Australian drivers for its ride-sharing service, which the State Government has declared illegal.
As reported by InDaily on Friday, state Transport Minister Stephen Mullighan has approved Uber to run its UberBlack service in South Australia. The service allows passengers to book accredited hire cars via an app.
After establishing a local office, Uber was considered by Mullighan to be compliant with the Passenger Transport Act.
However, he stressed that its UberX service – which allows passengers to ride-share with essentially ordinary motorists – remained illegal in South Australia.
Uber’s Australian general manager David Rohrsheim said the company would continue to push the Government on UberX.
“If South Australia does not currently allow drivers to share rides in their own car, then we’d be eager to start a conversation with the Government about how regulations could be updated,” he told InDaily.
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“I’m confident of being able to work with the Government to resolve any issues around UberX. We hope to see the Government approach ridesharing policy with the same focus on safety and the best interests of consumers we saw with their review of UberBlack.”
He has some powerful local backing, with the RAA questioning why ride-sharing should not be embraced to ease congestion on the roads.
The Government itself promotes a ride-sharing scheme with the Adelaide City Council.
Uber has also engaged a local law firm, Piper Alderman, to represent its interests in South Australia.
The taxi industry has scaled back its rhetoric on UberBlack following last week’s approval but is adamant that UberX should continue to be unwelcome in South Australia.
Taxi Council SA president Jim Triantafyllou said the taxi industry had always competed against hire cars “by offering one of South Australia’s most efficient and effective passenger services”.
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“The taxi industry has been consistent in its position that it simply wants a level playing field for all operators and the Government’s approval of Uber Black means it will have to comply with appropriate regulations,” he said.
“We are pleased the Minister has unconditionally stated that the illegal ride sharing application, Uber X, is not welcome in SA. We understand any move to introduce Uber X would see a swift response from Minister Mullighan including to prosecute drivers.”
Taxi operator Sim Singh, who operates around 40 taxis in South Australia, said the industry would have to step up to meet the challenge of Uber.
“We have two choices now: whether to compete with Uber and make this industry better, or to surrender,” he said. “There are no other choices.
“Of course it’s going to be hard for us to survive in the future. I am positive it will impact on our business very hard, this Uber thing.
“It’s low cost and they’re delivering the same service.”
Singh said the industry had to improve training for its drivers, but the central issue for the industry was the cost of operating.
“The problem we have with our taxi industry is the (profit) margin,” he said.
“It has been so badly shaved as a business model. Every year we have put the fare up to compensate for the (cost of) registration. That’s the main killer in our taxi business.
“Our request to government is to put the expenses down for taxis.”
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