The power of good partners
Uber is also partnering with others to encourage an EV revolution. Only in March, Uber announced it had reached a global agreement with BP Pulse, the arm of BP focused on EVs, to work together to encourage battery-powered vehicle uptake.
For Australian drivers, this agreement includes more planned incentives such as offering charging discounts via BP Pulse charge points, with those in EVs able to save 5-8 cents per kilowatt-hours (kWh) at these locations.
For its part, this partnership also sees the energy powerhouse (that has its own nought emission goal of 2050) committing to increasing the numbers of charging points at its outlets around the world by almost five times.
Pursuing alliances like this is vital, says Uber’s global head of security Christopher Hook. “Getting to 100 percent electric is not something Uber can do alone. It is a team sport, and it will take partnerships like this to reach zero tailpipe emissions.”
Real change on the menu
The company is also looking beyond its ride-share vehicles, adding Uber Eats to its remit against climate change. In June, Uber announced a global commitment to get its food delivery riders to switch to e-bikes, EVs and other comparable vehicles, and working to ensure businesses ditch wasteful food packaging in exchange for sustainable and recyclable packaging.
“Each year approximately 11 million metric tons of plastic pollution enters the earth’s oceans, with consumer take-out items making up the largest share across marine environments,” Uber’s senior vice president of delivery, Pierre Dimitri Gore-Coty shared in a post on the company’s website.
He went on to detail that Uber will use “discounts, incentives and advocacy” to get its food partners, and more, to abandon single-use plastics.
“We aim to be the first global delivery tech platform to support the transition to more sustainable packaging — not just for Uber Eats merchants, but for the broader restaurant delivery ecosystem.”
The future is green
Globally, the company has a raft of plans and concepts it wants to try moving forward, exploring everything from finding ways to reduce time on the road for delivery vehicles, developing impactful relationships with e-bike suppliers and food packaging suppliers, and finding ways to help couriers take up zero-emission vehicles.
So that Uber Green leaf logo says it all – the company is not just moving forward, it’s ready to improve the very air around us.
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