3,000 Drivers Sign Up – Uber Available Once Again in Budapest

From June 13, Uber can be ordered once again in the capital, the head of the company’s Hungarian subsidiary announced. Uber is returning to Hungary since 2016, which could mean fierce competition with Bolt (Estonian mobility company) in the app-based passenger transport market. Index has confirmed that drivers who meet the conditions will be able to work without commission for the first three months.

The best strategy is not to keep up with changes, but to dictate the trends, said Elek Nagy, owner of Főtaxi. Uber, entering the market in partnership with them, started operations on Thursday.

At a press conference organized for the occasion, the businessman pointed out that

they had set their sights on reforming the taxi market by partnering with Uber, the pioneer of app-based passenger transport technology.

According to him, the two companies, Főtaxi and Uber, will do more in the domestic market together than separately. Nagy said that through F-Mobilitás Kft, a subsidiary of Főtaxi, they offer excellent conditions for passengers, but they also offer drivers a package that makes it worthwhile to join them. In a related development, it has been confirmed that

for the first three months, eligible drivers can work without commission.

There is also an offer for passengers: until June 30, they can try the service free of charge three times up to a value of HUF 5,000 (EUR 12.6).

Eszter Kardos, head of Uber Hungary, noted: the service is reliable, comfortable, and safe. She stressed that Uber is available in 10,000 cities around the world, serving 150 million passengers a month. She added that the fact that 100,000 people opened the app in Hungary last year alone, while Uber was not even available in Hungary, is a sign of the success of the service.

Ádám Reich, head of F-Mobilitás Kft., underlined that despite the partnership, Főtaxi and Uber will remain competitors. As for the race for qualified drivers, the expert believes in the self-regulation of the market. There will be as many people behind the wheel as are really needed. Reich added that

Uber offers predictable and competitive earnings for drivers who join, so it is no coincidence that around 3,000 drivers have started the registration process.

This is indicative, if only because the total taxi market is supposed to be around 6,500 drivers. Reich reported that both experienced drivers and young people starting out in their careers are actively interested. Kardos added: technology is in their favor, the key issue in this market is how to connect passengers and drivers.

Zoltán Metál, president of the National Taxi Association (OTSZ), when asked by Index about the big comeback of Uber, the competition with Bolt, and the causal links affecting the segment as a whole, said that

it is foreseeable that the market will be reorganized.

Via Index; Featured image via Facebook/Uber Taxi Budapest/Szabó Paja