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London court rules Uber app is legal

October 16, 2015

Britain's High Court has ruled in favor of the popular yet controversial taxi-hailing app Uber, saying the way it calculates its fares is legal. The decision allows Uber cabs to continue operating normally in London.

https://p.dw.com/p/1GpJe
England London Taxi
Image: Robin Powell

London's taxi drivers association, the LTDA, was quick to lodge an appeal on Friday after the court said Uber drivers' fare-calculating software did not amount to a taxi meter and was therefore in accordance with British law.

London transport authorities had asked the court to clarify the law which prevents private for-hire vehicles from charging passengers the same way as the capital's famous black cabs.

Judge Duncan Ouseley ultimately ruled that Uber's app could not be classified as a taxi meter because it relayed GPS information to a server, which then determines the fare - something a regular taxi meter does not do.

"A taxi meter … is not a device which receives GPS signals in the course of a journey, and forwards GPS data to a server located outside of the vehicle, which calculates a fare … and sends the fare information back to the device," he said.

Uber has drawn the ire of taxi drivers and some regulators around the world who contend the San Francisco-based company is undercutting the traditional taxi industry.

Two Uber managers are on trial in France over accusations they subverted pro-taxi laws with the company's UberPop services. The European Commission is also examining bans on the ride-hailing app in France and Germany.

cjc/uhe (Reuters, dpa)