This article will review Uber's new 15p per mile surcharge on journeys. It will argue that the scheme- essentially a PR exercise- will do little to fill the pockets of its workers or help the environment. Additionally it will make the point that consumers alone should not have to shoulder the societal burden that the malpractise of large firms like Uber cause.

I begin this article with a slightly bitter taste in my mouth. As has been well documented, Uber have announced they will start charging a 15p per mile surcharge on journeys to help its drivers switch to electric cars. I despaired at this, an increase in prices is never good news for a student. However, an extra 50 or so pence a journey does not make much of a change to the thousands I already owe in crippling, unpayable debt. The real despair came from my realisation that this new policy will actually prove to be more harmful, to drivers and the environment, than good?

The last time I used Uber was a couple of weeks ago. I had just gone to meet my friend for lunch and it had begun to rain apocalyptically: it would have to be an uber (rather than a long walk) home. Uneventful, boring, but it did the job, like any taxi. Would an extra 50p have made me not take that Uber? Probably not, if I didn’t know about it. But I do. And I also know that Uber are a what some might call ethically questionable. So now that I do know that Uber are charging me and extra 15p a mile to help their drivers afford electric cars, it leaves me, as mentioned earlier, with a bitter taste in my mouth. Now, this is not because I don’t want to stop climate change (I like polar bears, and as any of my friends know I am not a fan of extreme temperatures, be it hot or cold).

No, it annoys me because this is nothing new, consumers are regularly demonised for issues which they did little to contribute towards creating. Take, for example, the media and government hype around plastic straws. Now, I agree that biodegradable straws are far better for the world, however I disagree with the publicised opinion that by using plastic straws we are single-handedly destroying Mother Nature. Plastic straws account for .03% of plastic waste in our oceans, whilst fishing nets account for 46% of the waste in the great pacific garbage patch, a behemoth of floating waste the size of France. I am not arguing against the reduction of plastic (we use far too much of it and unnecessarily), but what I am arguing against is how the burden of it is being passed onto consumers, expecting us to fix issues which we have not created, issues which corporations have created and continue to create, in light of our efforts. This is, in essence, what Uber are doing by introducing this charge, ignoring the issue they themselves have created by churning out tonnes of additional greenhouse gases throughout their operating history, and expecting us as consumers to clean it up for them.

It’s not only the environment that Uber are shirking. For years Uber drivers have complained about low wages, culminating in strikes and road blocks. No doubt then, one reason for the introduction of this charge is also to appease drivers. But 15p per mile is not nearly enough to adequately ensure their drivers are earning a fair living wage amidst reports of Uber drivers living below the poverty line. A bigger issue is that a quarter of fares that Uber drivers earn go to Uber as a service charge. If Uber were to lower this to, a still high but more reasonable, 15%ish then it would have a far better effect than a tiny increase in price for the drivers. Instead, Uber are parring off their corporate responsibilities onto us as consumers, whilst they themselves are sitting back and continuing in their profit hungry taxi firm conquest. So, not only is Uber neglecting its responsibility to the environment, but to its drivers too, enticing them in with a token raise, and with no assurances to actually guarantee them a living wage.

What’s more, If the drivers were to use the extra fee (which Uber generously estimate will raise up to £1,500 a year per driver), as Uber claim, to buy an electric vehicle it would take them a whopping 14 years to buy even the cheapest electric car Uber will accept (a Nissan Leaf which goes for about £21,000 for a base model). Even with Uber’s initiative that they will subsidise the purchase of an electric vehicle by up to £5000, it would still take almost 11 years.A bit too late to save the world, perhaps…

Now then, I know I’ve spent this article complaining so far, but there is something important to take from all of this. That it is only a collective effort from corporations, and consumers together that will help to combat climate change and air pollution in our major cities. Now, I am no saint when it comes to this. I enjoy beef; I wear jeans; when the recycling bin is full, I chuck stuff in the normal bin. However, I recognise that stopping (or at least slowing) climate change is the biggest issue we have ever faced as humans; as for the first time, we face a problem where one of the outcomes, could be our extinction as a species. The real question then is: does Uber recognise it? They are making baby steps towards providing some sort of solution to their vast CO2 emitting fleet, but are they putting it ahead of their profits? Absolutely not. If they were really serious about climate change and air pollution, they’d be cracking down on their gas-guzzling vehicles as ‘Green Tomato Cars’ has, who only allow their drivers to drive low or no emission vehicles and operate a carbon negative business model have. Whilst the world’s biggest corporations still target profits ahead of tackling climate change, hope is bleak.

I know I could do a lot more for the environment; but Uber? Uber could do a lot more.