Uber is yet again in new disagreements with authorities.

On March 3, Uber lost to Transport for London (TfL), the local government agency managing the city’s transport system, in its case to challenge the latter’s requiring all taxi drivers to take a written English test.

TfL introduced the requirement, which is applicable for taxi drivers seeking to obtain or renew their private hire licence to drive inside London after 1 April 2017, in June 2016. 

Accordingly, drivers will have to pass a written English exam, including a 120-word essay. 

Uber did succeed in getting the TfL to apply the requirement to all drivers including those from English speaking country on grounds of discrimination. However, it failed to get the TfL to drop the requirement.

In London, drivers who drive for Uber have to have the private-hire license issued by TfL.

As reported by The Guardian, general manager of Uber London, Tom Elvidge, earlier called the requirement a “deeply disappointing outcome for tens of thousands of drivers who will lose their livelihoods because they cannot pass an essay writing test”.

“We’ve always supported spoken English skills, but writing an essay has nothing to do with communicating with passengers or getting them safely from A to B,” Elvidge added.

On the other hand, the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said drivers being able to speak English and understand information from passengers and licensing requirements is a vital part of ensuring passengers get the high standard of service they need and deserve.

“This could include discussing a better route, talking about a medical condition, or ensuring every driver is fully up to date with new regulations,” he said.

In another instance, Uber has been found using a tool called Greyball to deceive law enforcement officials in cities where its service is not legal.

As reported by The New York Times, Greyball used geolocation data, credit card information, social media accounts and other data points to identify government officials. 

As a result, officials attempting to hail an Uber might see icons of cars within the app navigating nearby, but no one would come pick them up. 

The programme helped Uber drivers avoid being ticketed.

Greyball has been used in Portland (Oregon), Philadelphia, Boston, and Las Vegas, as well as France, Australia, China, South Korea and Italy.

According to a statement from Uber, the programme is aimed at violators of its terms of service. “This programme denies ride requests to users who are violating our terms of service—whether that’s people aiming to physically harm drivers, competitors looking to disrupt our operations, or opponents who collude with officials on secret ‘stings’ meant to entrap drivers,” the company said.

In 2016, Uber was estimated to be valued at $66 billion. CEO Travis Kalanick in an interview with Vanity Fair in October last year said that Uber is not going to have an initial public offering (IPO) soon. 

With Uber not being on the good books of governments in many countries and territories around the world, coupled with a host of recently revealed controversies, one may wonder whether the company is still valued $66 billion.

VIR