How it works.. but not everyone is appy
UBER is based around an app that lets users connect with drivers directly, after a price estimate for a journey has been provided.
Using GPS, the app pinpoints the user’s location and contacts the Uber drivers in the area. The nearest available driver takes the job. Payment is cashless via a credit card programmed into the app.
In busy periods, the firm brings in what is called “surge” or increased pricing.
Uber operates in 613 cities around the world and is available in over 25 areas of the UK. The start-up, launched in 2009 as UberCab, hit London in 2012, much to the consternation of black cabbies angry at Transport for London for licensing the firm and blurring the lines between traditional drivers and private hire.