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India’s Ola to begin operations in London in ‘coming weeks’

Indian ride-hailing giant Ola said today it will begin operations in London “in the coming weeks,” a day after the local authorities revoked Uber’s license to operate in one of the world’s most lucrative cities.

The Indian firm, which entered portions of the UK last year, said it has started to sign up drivers in London ahead of the launch in the city. The company, which has raised over $3.5 billion to date, aims to on-board 50,000 drivers in London.

Ola, which like its rival Uber counts SoftBank Group as an investor, secured an operating license from Transport for London (TfL) earlier this year. The company said it can already serve 7 million users across 27 boroughs in the UK.

Simon Smith, Head of International for Ola, said the company’s mobility platform is “fully compliant” with TfL’s standards. In a statement, he added, “we have had constructive conversations with the authorities, drivers, and local communities in London over the past months, and look forward to contributing towards solving mobility issues in innovative and meaningful ways.”

On Monday, Uber was stripped of its London license after authorities found that more than 14,000 trips on the platform were taken with drivers who had faked their identity.

Ola, on its part, could not have made it clearer that it was doing everything Uber supposedly didn’t.

Ola said in London, it will offer a range of safety features including an “industry-first” driver facial recognition system for “continuous authentication,” a “driver image verification against driving licence photographs,” “robust technology systems to ensure that only licensed drivers complaint with TfL requirements can operate on the platform,” a 24/7 helpline for customers and drivers, and an in-app emergency button to alert Ola’s Safety Response Team.

Expansion to London illustrates Ola’s growing international ambitions. The company has also launched its service in parts of New Zealand and Australia. So far in the UK, however, it has largely targeted tier 2 cities. The UK capital is a major European market. Uber, which said it was going to appeal TfL’s decision, itself claims to have about 3.5 million users and 45,000 registered drivers in the city.

More to follow…

PR pitch to Ola reveals the inner workings of UK ride-hailing politics

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