Uber Technologies announced on Wednesday that it is renaming its “Uber Green” service to “Uber Electric” and establishing a $4,000 grant program to drivers, as the ride-hailing giant works to turn all its rides to zero emissions by 2040.
This new grant, known as “Go Electric,” will offer eligible drivers up to $4000 to purchase a new or used EV in such states as California, New York, Colorado, and Massachusetts.
This program might be the key to achieving the climate goals and competitiveness of Uber in the green mobility race, since it may be used along with other discounts and incentives at the state level – this may potentially cut thousands of sticker prices even with a federal tax incentive expiring.
The federal tax credit for purchasing new electric vehicles was also introduced during the former presidency of Joe Biden, and it was worth $7,500, which is no longer available to consumers of EVs since it went out of force last month.
In the U.S. earlier this year, Uber transitioned its Uber Green service to an all-electric model, abandoning the hybrid-electric vehicles.
Uber claimed that more than 200,000 EVs are presently on its platform worldwide, and drivers in the U.S., Canada, and Europe go electric five times as fast as other drivers. The company stated that one out of four riders had their initial EV experience with Uber.
It will also provide a 20 percent discount on the next electric journey made by riders as a rebrand.
Uber is also rolling out battery-sensitive matching to 25 countries so that drivers will not be afraid of “range anxiety,” which is the fear that an electric vehicle will run out of charge before it has access to any charging station or completes a journey.
