Uber: Cheaper than taxi, but still unregulated

With 1 million trips in 18 months of operation, UberX's cheapest fare 25 baht, from Sukumvit to Thonburi 77 baht.

TRANSPORTATION

Uber: Cheaper than taxis, but still unregulated

18/11/2015
Suchit Leesa-nguansuk

US-based Uber says it has raced through the first round of an ongoing discussion with government agencies over its ride-sharing service in Thailand.

Uber is currently operating an unregulated transport service in Thailand, whereas in the Philippines Uber has already been issued a licence so the service is completely legal.

Uber has accumulated more than 1 million trips in Thailand since launching 18 months ago.

Uber's ambitious goal is to replace private car ownership in Thailand.

Using Uber will be 15-20% cheaper than owning a car per year, if things go according to plan.

LOW-COST UBERX

Uber expects continued high growth in Thailand, particularly for the low-cost UberX service.

UberX's service charges are considered the most affordable option even compared with traditional taxis.

The company in June cut its minimum fare from 45 baht to 25 baht for UberX.

Uber plans to further reduce its average ride costs from the current 110 baht to 100 baht in 2016, down from 120 baht last year.

To compare Uber with taxis, Uber's average service charge for a trip from Phloenchit Road to Thon Buri is 77 baht, compared with 87 to 125 baht in a taxi.

REDUCED WAIT TIME

Uber also wanted to reduce the average wait-time for passengers in Bangkok to 5.6 minutes this year, and down to four minutes in 2016.

People use Uber to get to the subway with 15-20% of trips within Bangkok on Uber ending within 100 metres of a subway or skytrain station.

Uber aims to increase the number of drivers in Thailand from 30,000 to 100,000 by 2017.

Uber takes a commission of 20% of the drivers' earnings.

Uber is worth an estimated US$50 billion with total funding of $8.21 billion.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/news/768844/uber-determined-to-press-ahead-with-thai-expansion

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