Uber BOAT starts serving the people in Middle East. In the Egyptian capital “Cairo” , Uber has started its journey of transportation with the alternative ways to beat the traffic problems in the country. And the idea of using UberBOAT for hailing services via an app –like that in Dubai and Delas for flying taxis– seems to be a step that would enhance the profitability of Uber transportation as well as comfort of the public.
In areas where road services are hard to get the hailers to their destination, Uber would from now on be using UberBOAT.
If the experiment is successful, the expansion of the business could find its way into other markets too.
Cairo, the Egyptian capital, has a population of over 20 million people. Cairo is known to be home to some of the world’s worst traffic, and by some estimates is responsible for wasting more than 3.5 percent of the country’s GDP.
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UberBOAT is a seasonal service that would from now on utilizing the famed Nile river which dissects the city. The service offers an alternative to both the traffic, as well as Egypt’s underdeveloped public transportation system.
Uber 1st entered the Cairo market in 2014, 3 years before, and now the company is using the city as a testbed, since its huge population is also relatively young & prone to using ride-hailing apps.
Uber faces considerable competition in Cairo, though, in the form of Careem, that is an alternative ride-hailing service that besides the cars, also offers rides on scooters that can weave through the gridlock much more effectively.
Significantly, Careem has recently teamed up with a startup titled ” Swvl “. Swvl offers a latest twist on ride-hailing: private buses. The service was began this year and it is running along fixed routes ( just like the regular bus lines ) but sans the overcrowded and often downright uncomfortable conditions that are commonly associated with public buses in Cairo and around the world.
With more than 100,000 customers in duration of just a few months, Swvl’s success is already urging Uber to step to alter its gameplan.
In this regard, Talks with the Cairene government are reportedly ongoing to start a full-fledged Uber bus service.
“If you can keep innovating and coming up with different methods to get more people in fewer vehicles and get Cairo and other cities to be less congested, that is definitely a good thing and not just for the ride-sharing industry,” says Abdellatif Waked, general manager of Uber Egypt.
