Volkswagen is making a $300 million bet on one of Uber's rivals

  Shahar Waiser, cofounder and CEO of Gett.

Volkswagen is making a $300 million strategic investment into taxi app Gett, the startup announced on Tuesday.

The auto giant’s minority investment comes as it attempts to move beyond a huge corporate crisis over emissions, and launches a new mobility unit focused on new technology.

VW “want to go beyond vehicle ownership,” Gett CEO Shahar Waiser told Business Insider in a telephone interview.

Gett, an Israeli startup that launched in 2010, works in a similar way to rival Uber: Users can use an app to simply hail a taxi.

The company is not profitable overall, Waiser said — although it is in some early markets. It has annual revenues of $500 million. It has previously raised $220 million in venture capital — with VW’s $300 million taking the total up to $520 million. Waiser declined to comment on Gett’s valuation.

It currently operates in 60 European cities, as well as New York. The new funding will help accelerate expansion on the continent, Gett says.

Waiser also said that Gett’s technology — big data, predictive algorithms, and so on — could prove useful in the development of self-driving vehicles, but stressed that neither Gett is not currently developing autonomous vehicle technology.

Drivers who use Gett can stand to benefit from the deal: They will be offered terms on Volkswagen vehicles that are better than market rates, Waiser says. This, in turn, could make the platform more attractive to potential drivers looking to get into the ride-hailing business.

The investment is also likely to some extent a necessity, as ride-hailing companies raise increasingly huge war chests in their battle for dominance. Uber has raised billions. And Didi Chuxing, a Chinese ride-hailing company, recently received a rare $1 billion investment from Apple.

VW isn’t the first legacy auto company to invest in the ride-hailing business. Back in January, General Motors sank half a billion dollars into Lyft, at a valuation of $5.5 billion (and as part of a larger $1 billion Series F funding round).

Source : Business Insider.

from Taxi Leaks http://ift.tt/1qJ4dt9
via IFTTT

It's Not Uber Killing The Trade, Its The Engagement Policy...Letter To Editor.

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Letter To Taxi Leaks : Heathrow Surrounding Area, Turned Into Pseudo Migrant Camps

I have witnessed first hand how Uber cancer has attacked Heathrow area like a tornado. I have spoken to residents who have basically given up reporting to the local authorities including the Met police. 

This Addison Lee Driver, was alleged to have repeatedly assaulted a female resident in Little Harlington Playing Fields on video. 

Uber have formed migrant camps all over the Heathrow vicinities. Every available space from parks and lay-bys, from McDonald's to pub forecourts. From Hotel areas, to business car parks and Petrol forecourts. Areas like Sipson, Colnbrook and Stanwell. Etc etc. 

Uber have decimated the local minicab firms. It's as if the Calais camps have moved here lock stock and borrowed. Unless you have actually witnessed what has happened here first hand, you will not know the horror that has happened to once lovely areas. 

Bags of human waste are evident all over a five mile stretch. Apparently the locals state the smell from human waste in the parks that once housed children playing or the locals that use to walk their dogs etc. The stench in the air makes you vomit instantly. 

On my journey in most days, Uber cars are lined up on no waiting areas. Drivers asleep or openly using the spaces as toilets. These animals have no respect for any laws or for the local communities. 

Look at the video posted earlier, these residents are now prisoners in their own homes. Anarchy and scenes of Calas camps are now visable for all to witness. NO FEMALES are safe walking around these parts. 

TFL have caused this attack on lawful home owners, as well as the rest of us. Gangs of Uber migrants are openly doing as they would from camps in Greece and France. Words fail me right now. 

Unfortunately we live in a PC world where White middle classes have played their part in creating "No go camps". This has nothing to do with being racist at all. 

The London cab trade has all creeds and colours etc. We all have to live by rules and regulations. Unfortunately this uber disease has no such rulings in place. 

Welcome to Conservative way of giving these animals a chance up the ladder and look how they are paying us back. 

Thank you Cameron thank you TFL. 

And thank you Met Police. 

Corruption at the top has created Migrant camps out west!

Regards, Heathrow Taxi driver

from Taxi Leaks http://ift.tt/1XNXewk
via IFTTT

Police Ignore Assaults On Female By PHV Drivers In Harlington

Amazing footage of a Harlington resident, Christine Aardman, who's had enough of the private hire vehicles she feels are destroying the area. So she decided to video what's been happening in a parking area of little Harlington playing fields, Sipson Lane. 

She went their to take a few picture but while there, on 9th April 2016 at 9:10 am, she was subjected to racial and sexual abuse.

She said "It's a risky business going to no-go areas full of Heathrow PH drivers, but I only planned to see if things have improved from three days earlier, when I fist contacted the police.

"As soon as I arrived I was spotted by a PHV driver who shouted 'hi, what woman what are you doing here?'. Intimidation and assaults followed, but it was the cafes leaseholder who rang the police".

A further assault happens just before police arrive but no crime will appear in police figures. So that's no action and no red faces, about no go areas is created by Heathrow (private hire vehicles) drivers

The lady filming, later discovered that the police officially recorded the incidents as littering and parking issues.

Christine says she was shocked by the lead police officers attitude. His focus was more on the female owner who had made the call to the police and the private hire drivers. He didn't want to see film she had taken all CCTV of the incident.

.  ...

from Taxi Leaks http://ift.tt/1WKQVKj
via IFTTT

Minicab Sexual Assaults, Could The Solution Really Be This Simple?...by Jim Thomas

Apparently, the biggest problem facing the public, in regards to London's Licensed Taxi trade (in the eyes of TfL), has been the refusal of drivers to accept credit cards. 

TfL in their infinite wisdom have acted swiftly by mandating drivers acceptance of all credit cards -including contactless payments- to be implemented in October this year.

In the eyes of TfL and the public... simple solution, problem solved. 

The biggest problem facing passengers in private hire vehicles at present, is customer safety. 

Reports from freedom of information requests, show from February last year to February this year, 154 instances of sexual assaults (including rapes) against passengers were recorded against private hire drivers. 32 of which the Met police were accusations made against Uber drivers. We must also be aware that the Metropolitan police state in their POP (Clapham) report, that over 60% of sexual attacks never get reported.

So what has TfL come up with as a permanent solution to this problem....they've  sat on their hands, with a bewildered look on their face, shaking their head. 

Paying people enormous amounts of money, doesn't guarantee common sense, they just haven't got a clue what to do.

As always, the solution could be very simple. 

Every Private Hire Vehicle should have two way CCTV fitted as part of their conditions of fitness. Some insurance companies are currently fitting systems at no cost to the owner. Every vehicle should have 2cm high easy to remember registration numbers, emblazoned on the dash, plus both front and rear windscreen. PHV drivers should also be subject to having their DNA taken for future cross-referencing. These measures would also protect the driver from false allegations

>Driver saved from false allegations by CCTV footage<

Currently PHV licence numbers virtually unreadable and almost impossible to ascertain. Seven digits in minuscule font, with 9 out of ten roundels hidden behind tinted screens. 

A simplified registration of three letters, followed by two digits (1,797,600 combinations) in 2cm high font (same as Taxi ID cards) facing the passengers bottom left of windscreen, should be an easy to remember reference. Combined with tamper proof CCTV  video, should see an almost immediately cessation in sexual assaults on passengers in legitimate Private Hire vehicles.

How is it that Taxis have to have the drivers badge number emblazoned on both front and back windscreens, in 2cm high font plus vehicle PCO pate numbers on back and in passenger compartment...having to be clearly visible at all times, and yet PH have small roundels with tiny digits, unreadable unless viewed up close and in the majority of cases, hidden behind tinted screens. 

With 99.99% of all passenger assaults, over the past 30 years having occurred in minicabs, how have these brainiacs at TfL managed to get it so wrong with vehicle identification?

from Taxi Leaks http://ift.tt/25hTzfI
via IFTTT

The Buck Stops Here????....Letter To Taxi Leaks From Dads Defending Daughters.

The Truth, The Whole Truth, And Nothing Like The Truth.... By Jim Thomas

While the LTDA are busy braking arms, slapping themselves on the back, in aid of the next Taxi magazine headline....

Taxi Leaks would like to set the record straight by thanking Danny Henderson who made the original FOI request on 11 Fed 2016 to the Met Police. 

Freedom of Information Request Reference 

No:  2016020000642

>CICK HERE TO VIEW FULL REQUEST<

We would also like to thank Angela Clarkson and Heather Rawlings from their time and effort spent, bringing this FOI request to the attention of the national press.

We should also like to thank Danny Sullivan for an earlier FOI request which produced this graph showing that more TfL licensed minicab drivers were involved in sexual assaults and rapes than unlicensed fake drivers.

But... Bob, Steve, Richard...don't let he truth get in the way of a good story....again.

FROM THE PAPERS:

IN THE SUN

UBER drivers are accused of rape or sex attacks on customers nearly three times a month in London.

They were suspects in 32 cases reported by female passengers in the capital across 12 months. 

The tap-and-ride app, which now operates in 20 UK cities, claims to be the “safest ride on the road”.

(Funny, not a word about the AddVan here!)

IN THE MIRROR

Female passengers have made 32 claims of rape or sexual assault against Uber drivers in London over the past 12 months. 

The Metropolitan Police Service and West Yorkshire Police released information on reports relating to the minicab app after The Sun requested information from 14 police forces. 

West Yorkshire Police received four reports of serious sex assaults and eight violent incidents from February 2015 to February this year.

The Met had recorded 154 allegations including minicabs, private chauffeurs and even rickshaw riders.

(Nothing again about the AddVan!)

IN THE INDEPENDENT

 Uber drivers are accused of sexually assaulting or raping customers almost three times a month, according to new figures which have outraged rape campaigners.

Freedom of Information data obtained by The Sun newspaper revealed 32 assault claims were made against employees of the taxi-hailing app in London over the past twelve months, equal to one every eleven days.

(Again, not a word about the AddVan!)

What ever next: 

They might even claim the kudos for sorting out St Pancras and not even mention the week long demonstrations organised by Dads Defending Daughters and attended by drivers from every org. Oops, too late...they already have. 

from Taxi Leaks http://ift.tt/1ODT2Yx
via IFTTT