Uber claims it could add 100 more drivers in Aberdeen, but says the city’s outdated licensing rules are stopping it from meeting demand.
In the six months since its soft launch in October, the ride-hailing platform says it has logged more than 190,000 trip requests in Aberdeen.
But a “significant portion” of those have gone unanswered due to a shortage of licensed drivers.
“We have been able to service a certain number of those trips, but not as many as we would like,” admitted Matthew Freckelton, Uber’s head of cities.
“We think we can easily support up to 100 new drivers on our platform.
“The main blocker is Aberdeen City Council’s street knowledge test.”
Uber declined to reveal how many drivers it has active in the city, citing commercial sensitivity. The Press and Journal understands the number is in single digits.
Why hasn’t Uber app taken off in Aberdeen?
Uber says the main blocker to recruiting drivers is Aberdeen City Council’s onerous street knowledge test.
Mr Freckelton describes it as the most restrictive in Scotland, taking around six months to prepare for, with a fail rate of 85%.
“There are no street knowledge tests in Edinburgh and Glasgow,” he explained.
“We have asked the council whether Aberdeen is more complicated to navigate than Edinburgh and Glasgow? The question goes unanswered.”
The Uber chief says the driver shortage is already hurting the night-time economy and making life more difficult for shift workers, including hospital and retail staff, who rely on late-night travel.
“People are potentially having to walk home late at night in the dark. And that’s not a safe situation.”
Unlike traditional taxis which can be hailed on the street or wait at ranks, Uber operates as a private hire company.
This means all trips must be pre-booked via the app, with sat-nav providing the route.
Mr Freckelton says most Scottish councils have already scrapped street knowledge tests for private hire licensing, recognising that technology has changed the industry.
Uber claims it was locked out of Aberdeen trade meetings
But in Aberdeen, Uber says it’s not just up against restrictive rules – it’s also being shut out of key decision-making meetings by council.
“Aberdeen is the first city that we have been prevented from attending meetings,” he said.
“We are licensed by 90 councils and Aberdeen told me I wasn’t allowed to attend the meetings.”
Though the council has since invited Uber to register its interest in attending future meetings, access remains at the discretion of the licensing committee.
Disputed demand figures
The tension ramped up further when a recent council-commissioned “unmet demand” survey concluded there was no shortage of taxi and private hire availability in Aberdeen.
Uber disagrees – strongly.
“We weren’t even told the consultation was happening,” Mr Freckleton said. “We have the data and we can demonstrate that there is significant unmet demand in Aberdeen.
“I’ve got 190,000 trip requests, most of that is unmet, that I cannot meet because I cannot get drivers licensed because of the street knowledge test.
“In our opinion, that was a misleading report.”
An Aberdeen City Council spokesperson said Uber was made aware of its requirements for drivers to pass the knowledge test before it was granted a booking office license.
“The street knowledge test was recently the subject of a content review, and the most recent figure had the pass mark at 33% since the changes have been implemented,” he added.
“Uber and other applicants were advised that there were currently no vacancies on the taxi and private hire consultation group at the time of application.
“However, the makeup of the group is currently under review and spaces may become available.
“The legislation permits a topographical test and to date it has been the view of the licensing committee that the test remains appropriate.”
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