By SARAH MICHAEL FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA
PUBLISHED: 01:09 EST, 17 June 2015 | UPDATED: 01:10 EST, 17 June 2015
Ride sharing company Uber has cut the prices of its controversial UberX service by 10 per cent in Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Uber made the announcement on Wednesday that it would discount its fares until early August in an attempt to get more passangers using the app.
The app’s UberX service is operated drivers in privately-owner cars, with customers getting a cheaper fare than a regular taxi.
The taxi industry has labelled Uber – particularly its UberX service – ‘dangerous and illegal’ and state governments have issued fines to UberX drivers for ‘operating a commercial passenger vehicle without a licence’.
Uber made the announcement on Friday that it would discount UberX fares in the Victorian capital indefinitely, after dropping its price by 20 per cent in Perth last month
This comes after Uber dropped UberX prices by 15 per cent in Melbourne last month, and by 20 per cent in Perth in April.
Last month marked one year since UberX launched in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, and the service has since also launched in the Gold Coast, Geelong and Perth.
Uber said more than 4000 people in Melbourne, 3000 in Sydney and 2000 in Brisbane had taken up jobs as UberX drivers over 12 months.
Simon Rossi said at the time: ‘We [dropped prices] four weeks ago in Perth and the results were amazing, we saw tremendous trip growth which meant more riders are coming to the platform to ride.’
He said Melbourne was the biggest market for UberX in Australia, with more than 4000 drivers operating.
The app’s UberX service offers customers cheaper fares than taxis for rides in drivers’ privately-owned cars
Uber is considered the black sheep of the taxi industry in Australia, with state governments campaigning against UberX and fining drivers who take up jobs with the service.
But hundreds of thousands of Australian’s are using the ride-sharing app which not only promises cheaper taxi fares but has also pledged to create 20,000 new jobs Down Under in 2015.
Aside from stringent taxi licensing laws, a lot of the issues around Uber X stem from the fact people fear they are essentially climbing into a stranger’s car.
Reports of assaults allegedly committed by Uber drivers, especially in the US, have compounded that fear.
The Taxi Council Queensland last year began an anti-Uber campaign based on this theory, using the slogan ‘Don’t risk your life – Rideshare apps are unlawful, unsafe and uninsured’.
TCQ chief executive Benjamin Wash said: ‘You simply don’t know who is behind the wheel.’
However, this is somewhat untrue, as many Uber X users know. Before an Uber car arrives you are shown the details and a photo of the person who is picking you up on the app, allowing you to share the information with friends if you so wish.
‘From request to drop-off, the entire Uber experience is geared towards ensuring reliability and safety,’ Uber explained.
‘Upon requesting a ride, our technology provides the rider with their driver’s name, photograph, licence plate, vehicle type, and a contact number. The rider can see the vehicle approaching on a map, and share their journey in real time with friends or loved ones using our Share My ETA feature.’
And Uber spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia ‘every Uber partner must have passed a criminal background check through the Australian Federal Police’s Crimtrac database before they are allowed to drive on the platform’.
That does not mean there haven’t been horror stories so far. In Melbourne, a teenager was allegedly indecently assaulted by an Uber driver she hired to take her home on New Year’s Day.