Uber hopes for an easier ride with its new London licence

theguardian.com:

It seems hard to credit, but in the days before the likes of Vladimir Putin and P&O Ferries showed their true colours, Uber was regarded by many in London as one of the more suspect foreign arrivals.

This week, however, the global ride-hailing firm will once again find out if it is on the naughty step, when its licence to operate in one of its biggest markets comes up for renewal.

Its first private hire licence, along with thousands more for its drivers, came without too much fuss in 2012 from Transport for London, who were keen to embrace the latest technology in everything from tickets to traffic lights – even as the traditional London cabby cried foul at the new US cock of the walk.

Renewing that licence has been a different matter. Uber will be hoping this will be the third time lucky, after being knocked back twice in the space of two years and having to suffer the indignity of pleading to a magistrate for a conditional extension.

Are they now, in the parlance, “fit and proper”? Few would want to prejudge TfL, whose reasons for turning down Uber in 2017 and 2019 had largely flown under the radar. Beforehand, opponents from the taxi trade had focused on being undercut by lost Prius drivers unable to do a three-point turn, while socially aware campaigners cried foul at Uber’s payment and “partner” arrangements.

Instead, safety and security problems came to the fore. TfL cited Uber’s failure to report alleged offences to the police in 2017. Then, after beefing up reporting protocols, in 2019 Uber was slapped down because drivers had worked under fake identities.

Chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi had just come in as the new broom after alarming claims of boardroom harassment did for founder Travis Kalanick in 2017.