Uber India’s mobility biz showing recovery led by demand for low-cost products

Uber India on Monday said that its mobility business is showing “strong signs of recovery” led by rider demand for low cost products like Auto and Moto. The company’s fastest recovering metro markets after the lockdown are Kolkata, Hyderabad and Mumbai.

The firm claims that Uber Auto’s recovery across India, in terms of gross bookings, has now exceeded pre-Covid levels with Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Mysore, Bhubaneswar, Jaipur, Nagpur, Indore, Nashik and Kochi showing the strongest growth. With fewer physical touchpoints, better air circulation and social distancing measures in place, autos are largely being perceived as comparatively safer modes of transport, the company said.

“As cities start opening up and people begin moving again, we are witnessing renewed rider demand which augurs well for drivers because it means we can continue to create livelihood opportunities for them so they can support their families,” said Prabhjeet Singh, president, Uber India and South Asia.

With the onset of the pandemic last year, ride-hailing firms like Uber and Ola saw a sharp decline in bookings as corporates moved to working from home and people restricted non-essential movements.

Public transportation in India remained suspended during the first phase of the lockdown beginning March last year and was only permitted to operate with partial relaxations starting May.

To rein in costs amidst loss in business, Uber gave up its office space in Mumbai and had laid off 600 permanent employees in India as part of the firm’s global downsizing exercise.