Uber’s rival Ola banned in London over safety concerns

London’s transport authority, Transport for London (TfL), has banned Indian ride-hailing app Ola over public safety concerns.

The cab service has been running in London since February.

Tfl said the company reported a number of faults including more than 1,000 trips carried by unlicensed drivers.

On the other hand, Ola said it is going to appeal the decision and has 21 days to do so. In the meantime, it can operate as per the local appeal rules.

The transport regulator said Ola did not report the failings as soon as it recognize about them.

“Through our investigations we discovered that flaws in Ola’s operating model have led to the use of unlicensed drivers and vehicles in more than 1,000 passenger trips, which may have put passenger safety at risk,” Helen Chapman, TfL’s director of licensing, regulation and charging, said.

“If they do appeal, Ola can continue to operate and drivers can continue to undertake bookings on behalf of Ola. We will closely scrutinize the company to ensure passengers’ safety is not compromised.”

Uber win

Uber’s rival company began operating in Cardiff in 2018 and has since expanded to other locations in the UK.

“We have been working with TfL during the review period and have sought to provide assurances and address the issues raised in an open and transparent manner,” Marc Rozendal, Ola’s UK Managing Director, said in a statement.

“Ola will take the opportunity to appeal this decision and in doing so, our riders and drivers can rest assured that we will continue to operate as normal, providing safe and reliable mobility for London.”

Last week, Uber was granted to continue its operations in London after a judge approved its appeal against TfL.

The ride-hailing dominant has been given a new license to operate in the capital, after almost a year TfL rejected its application, also over safety concerns because of unauthorized drivers.

Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard that 24 Uber drivers shared their accounts with 20 others which led to 14,788 unauthorized rides.