Parking, petrol, insurance all taken care of for just 50 fils per minute

Following launch of Udrive app in Dubai recently, gets answers to questions people still want to know

So we’ve all heard of the new mobile application ‘Udrive’. Since launchingg in Dubai just over a week ago,, the pay-asyou-go car rental service has garnered over 2,000 users. According ding to the apps tagline, the service lets you drive ‘anywhere, everywhere’ for just 50 fils per minute with all your insurance, petrol and parking fees included. But what exactly does thatat mean?

With lots of unanswered questionsns on the lips of many since its launch, Khaleej Times digs a little deeper with Udrive’s Managingng Director, Hasib Khan, to shed some light on the subject.

It’s the sustainable alternative for people who can’t always get the bus or metro to their required destination, he added.

“For instance, the user can pick up the car, drive to work, then instead of leaving the car sitting at work all day, another user can utilise that same car instead of filling the road with an additional vehicle.”

A form of extended carpooling service, Khan said Udrive is definitely an environment-friendly approach to getting around the city.

“If we sh share cars like this for the daily work commute a and errand runs, that is a lot of emissions saved saved.”

And UAE-basedUAE Eco-tourism Operator Moaz Sawaf agre agrees.

“I think thist sounds like an excellent solution. Especially in the UAE where public transport is still gaininggainin legs.”

He said t this “shared-transport approach” acts as an incentiveincen to leave your car at home for basic commutes.commu

“Public transport is convenient but it takes time to get from A to B. Once a user’s journey is over another user can utilise this car. That’s one car instead of two o on the road!” On the facef of it, Sawaf said Udrive appears to be adding more cars on the road, b but essentially, it is offering up the ch chance to “reduce the number”. C Currently, with a fleet of 50 cars under its belt,be this is expected to increase to 100 over the next “three to eight weeks”. And expansion across the UAE is definitely on the horizon for Udrive, Khan said. With a maximumm charge of Dh120 per day and the promotionpro of shared transport becoming a “habit”,“hab it seems convenience for the customer is convenient for the environment after all.

Udrive will actually help reduce emissions on the road ... This service allows several people to share one car over the space of one day... It’s the sustainable alternative for people who can’t always get the bus or metro to their required destination

Hasib Khan, Udrive MD