Uber offers £5,000 grant for new electric cars as Sadiq Khan praises scheme
Ride-hailing app Uber is offering drivers the chance to benefit from a new £5,000 grant to help people get access to electric vehicles.
Drivers will be able to benefit from a piece of the £145million fund for its London drivers to make the industry more environmentally friendly.
Uber is offering a £5,000 grant for a new electric vehicle, as well as additional grants of up to £17,000.
London already has the largest number of electric Uber vehicles, with 25 per cent of ridesharing miles in the capital now being fully electric.
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Drivers could see savings of £22,000 on a new EV
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The San Francisco-based company has called for more incentives to be available for drivers to meet its goal of being all-electric in London by the end of 2025.
From tomorrow, Tuesday, May 21, the package of incentives will be offered to its London drivers through Uber’s Clean Air Plan.
This will include the initial £5,000 grant and additional discounts of between £12,000 and £17,000 available on select models.
Drivers could benefit from up to £22,000 off the price of a new EV when combined with the “Power-Up” grant.
Commenting on the new grants, Andrew Brem, general manager of Uber in the UK, said: “Now is the time to speed up on electrification, not slow down.
“We cannot reach our collective zero-emission goals without continued action from policymakers and investment across the industry.
“Uber drivers can be the catalyst for accelerating electrification across the transport sector but collaboration will be crucial to combat air pollution and work towards a more sustainable future.”
All electric vehicle drivers will also be eligible for up to three months of free charging credits worth £750 thanks to an exclusive charging rate through BP Pulse.
According to Zapmap data, there are almost 20,000 electric vehicle chargers across the capital – more than double the number of charging devices in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales combined.
Drivers can spend their grant money as a lump sum on a purchase of a new electric vehicle, or on a rental or rent-to-buy deal, which would see drivers make weekly payments.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “I am determined to achieve my mission to make London a net-zero city by 2030, and the electrification of our buses and cars is absolutely key to this.
“I welcome this initiative, which will give drivers who need it a helping hand to switch their petrol or diesel vehicle for an electric one.
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“Schemes like this are helping us to build a fairer, greener London for everyone.”