By increasing the number of car trips, Uber is increasing air pollution and climate change, according to a new study by the NGO Transport & Environment (T&E).
According to this document, while historically the number of taxis was limited due to the licensing system, Uber has experienced rapid uncontrolled growth, increasing car rides.
The Uber vehicle fleet is largely made up of diesel and petrol cars. According to T&E, French government data from 2017 show that 90% of private rental vehicles, including Uber, are diesel cars.
The development of Uber is therefore said to have led to an increase in emissions and air pollution.
More specifically, since the company's arrival in London, its largest European market, taxi and private rental car rides in the capital have increased by about 25%, the NGO estimates. According to the NGO, these data are strongly correlated with a 23% increase in overall CO2 emissions for the taxi and light commercial vehicle sector in the United Kingdom over the same period.
The report estimates that in London and Paris alone, Uber taxi service emissions could reach 515 kilotonnes of CO2.
In collaboration with other NGOs in the United States, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Belgium, T&E has therefore decided to launch a campaign calling on Uber to become 100% clean in major cities by 2025.
"If it wants to become part of the solution, Uber needs to stop using petrol and diesel cars and rapidly shift to 100% electric rides", said Yoann Le Petit, a mobility expert at T&E.
And Justyna Wladarz, transport policy expert for the German NGO NABU, added: "Uber is a wolf in sheep's clothing. It says it wants sustainable mobility, but what it really does is adding as many cars as possible to our already highly congested and polluted cities".
See the report: https://bit.ly/2D9Ma8a (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)