Two months since Uber announced its acquisition of electric, dockless bike-sharing service Jump, the beleaguered taxi firm has revealed its bringing the service to Europe this summer.
Speaking at the NOAH conference in Berlin, Dara Khosrowshahi said Uber’s Jump electric will come to the German capital in the coming months and expand to other, unnamed, European locations later in the year.
“Uber stands ready to help address some of the biggest challenges facing German cities: tackling air pollution, reducing congestion and increasing access to cleaner transportation solutions,” he said.
It’s believed the deal cost Uber $200 million (£141 million). In a blog post, Khosrowshahi said at the time of acquisition announcement: “We’re committed to bringing together multiple modes of transportation within the Uber app – so that you can choose the fastest or most affordable way to get where you’re going, whether that’s in an Uber, on a bike, on the subway, or more.”
Uber partnered with Jump earlier this year, trialling the bike-share service as a mode of travel in its app for users in San Francisco, so the deal didn’t come as a great surprise.
It’s not clear when the bikes will make it to UK cities in particular, not least because Uber cars have been banned in the capital.
Dockless bike sharing services including Ofo and Mobike already operate in cities around the UK, but Uber would inevitably have an advantage because many people already have its app installed on their phones.
Jump CEO said that the Jump app will continue to exist for now, but that this could eventually change.
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