News Desk |
On Tuesday, Uber announced that Australian city of Melbourne is the first city outside of the US that will be welcoming its aerial ridesharing service, expected to launch in 2023. This decision was announced at the Uber Elevate Summit held in Washington, where the ridesharing giant unveiled new objectives for its ambitious vision of aerial ridesharing.
Uber endorsed its flying taxis as the future of ridesharing and urban mobility and stressed that this initiative will aid in eliminating traffic congestion. Uber Air announced this decision and revealed its new partners for this highly ambitious collaboration. After Los Angeles and Dallas, Melbourne is the third official pilot city chosen for this project.
The California-based ridesharing giant also displayed new designs for its “Skyports” that will create a network for the aircraft.
Reports reveal that test flights are expected to launch in 2020, however, the commercial operations for the aerial ridesharing service are expected to be launched in 2023. Susan Anderson, Uber’s regional manager for Australia and other countries, said, “Australian governments have adopted a forward-looking approach to ridesharing and future transport technology.”
Anderson announced that after Melbourne, Uber will be looking towards launching its aerial ridesharing operations in other Australian cities. She said, “This, coupled with Melbourne’s unique demographic and geospatial factors, and culture of innovation and technology makes Melbourne the perfect third launch city for Uber Air. We will see other Australian cities following soon after.”
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Uber’s New Aircraft Partners
Uber has been joined by several new partners who share its vision of future transport technology since it first announced its ambitions for the aerial ridesharing initiative. Earlier this week, Uber had announced its new aircraft partners and collaborators in this program, which includes Pennsylvania-based Jaunt Air Mobility, who will assume the responsibility to manufacture a rotor and fixed-wing light aircraft.
Uber Air announced this decision and revealed its new partners for this highly ambitious collaboration.
Uber also announced its collaboration with French engineering firm Safran for its air taxi cabin design. Uber Elevate’s Head of Design, John Badalamenti announced at the summit, “Together with Safran Cabin, we’ve designed for the first time in history, a bespoke aircraft cabin that is truly mission-driven for aerial ridesharing on Uber Air.
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Uber also reintroduced the concept Bell Nexus flying quadcopter vehicle, which was revealed earlier this year and is expected to be a part of the Uber fleet. The California-based ridesharing giant also displayed new designs for its “Skyports” that will create a network for the aircraft.
The Uber Air Service is expected to work as a “multimodal” opportunity in collaboration with Uber’s car service in order to assist passengers in finding efficient flying schedules. The aerial ridesharing facility is designed to be operated through the Uber smartphone app, which includes air and ground transportation, and allows travelers to hop aboard one aircraft.