Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, will not be served by Uber and its competitor Careem for some time as the two companies decided their services indefinitely in light of the fact that drivers are not able to ply their trade in peace due to regular checking of licenses. The announcement was made yesterday and a spokesperson for Uber could not say when the services would be resumed. The spokesperson said, "This is a temporary suspension and we will let you know of any further updates,". However, at the same time, it must be noted that Uber did not specify why they decided to suspend services. Their competitor Careem, revealed the reason.
According to a report on Fortune Magazine, "Christian Eid, vice-president of marketing and communications for Careem, a Dubai-based company, said many of its drivers were being stopped by authorities in Abu Dhabi, apparently over licensing issues, and as a result had become nervous and were staying off the roads. This had forced Careem to halt services there, he said."
The report went on to add, "The Abu Dhabi government's Centre for Regulation of Transport by Hire Cars, which manages the taxi and transport sector, did not respond to queries. The centre oversees about seven taxi operators and 18 limousine operators, some of which are partly government owned. Uber and Careem said they had not suspended operations in neighbouring Dubai, the commercial and tourist hub of the UAE. Uber, which launched services in Abu Dhabi in 2013, said last year the Middle East and North Africa contained some of its fastest-growing markets and that it planned to invest $250 million to expand in the region." It does come as a body blow for the people of ABu Dhabi who use the taxi hailing services offered by the companies and also for the drivers who are now not sure when they would start earning again.
