Street Cars among major operators signing up for Uber Local Cab Manchester launch

A number of major Manchester operators including Street Cars, Lynx Taxis and Tameside Taxis, will all be able to access Uber jobs in the city following the launch of Uber’s Local Cab service in Manchester.

The move means the operators that have access to the Autocab iGo platform will be competing with Uber’s own Manchester services, which have been present since 2014. The move follows similar competitive moves in Peterborough and Edinburgh.

Passengers using the Uber app can now choose to book trips either with a local operator or via Uber directly, with different prices for journeys displayed on the app.

Uber says the move to work with locally licensed operators is to help it meet the high level of demand in the city, which its own fleet cannot service unaided.

Passengers will be able to use Local Cab alongside regular-Uber operated options, including UberX, Exec, Comfort and Lux. Local Cab trips will be passed to operators based around Greater Manchester to fulfil, and all subsequent customer support will be provided by them.

Naveed Arshad, director at Street Cars and Scott’s Cars, said: “We look forward to making Local Cab available to the people of Manchester. We feel that now, more than ever, a product like Local Cab is needed – with demand for taxis continuing to rise and passengers in need of more options.”

Ehsan Shakeri, managing director at Lynx Taxis, said: “We’re making it quicker and easier for people to get around Manchester, connecting more passengers with taxi drivers via the Uber app.”

And Jason Deakin, director at Tameside Taxis, said: “The partnership with Uber is also enabling us to provide further job opportunities to our drivers and we hope it will attract new recruits to join our fleet.”

Jamie Heywood, Uber’s regional general manager for Northern and Eastern Europe, said: “Manchester will be among the first cities in England where riders can access both UberX and Local Cab in the same app. This will help maximise earnings opportunities for drivers while giving passengers in Manchester more choice, meaning that everyone will benefit. We’re looking forward to launching Local Cab in more UK towns and cities soon.”