Nissan and Uber form a new Partnership

Published Date: 5th Sep 2016

Nissan UK has kicked off the trial in London to reduce emissions related air pollution with Uber by delivering a 20 strong fleet of Leafs for Uber to use as part of the project.

The Nissan Leaf will be the first all electric car for hire through the firms on demand taxi phone app in London.

Gareth Dunsmore, Head of Electric Vehicles, Nissan Europe, said: ‘We are delighted to be working closely with Uber on what is a very exciting project that could ultimately lead to major improvements in air quality in London and across the UK.

‘We are confident this trial will prove a success and that Uber will join scores of taxi and private hire operators across the UK and wider Europe in recognising the financial and environmental benefits of Nissan’s market-leading electric vehicles.

‘With the impact of poor air quality remaining a cause for concern, the trial could prove to be a pivotal moment for tackling the challenges in London.’

The trial is also being run in partnership with the Energy Savings trust (EST). The aim of the project is to look at the cost and practicality of running a large group of all electric private hire vehicles versus the current setup.

The EST will also be keeping a close eye on the cars being used to gather research data regarding the economics of Uber using the cars around the city in relation to the various charging points and consequential downtime occurred whilst charging.   

What have Uber already got in place for low emissions?

Around 60 percent of Uber journeys in London are already made by low emission hybrid vehicles. However Uber are keen to take the necessary steps to explore the environmental and economic benefits of going zero emissions so they’re ready for the Ultra Low Emissions Zone in 2020.

Jo Bertram, Regional General Manager of Uber in the UK, said: ‘People already associate Uber with hybrid cars, but we now want to go a big step further with fully electric cars on the road from today.

‘We are determined to use technology to help tackle the challenge of air pollution in London and across the UK. Our car-sharing service has already saved 1.2 million miles and 211 metric tonnes of CO2. With electric vehicles - and more people sharing their journey and leaving their own cars at home - there's even more we can do.’