Uber Testing New Features for Czech Clientele

The transport app is now testing a cash payments option and other unique services on the Czech market

Elizabeth Zahradnicek-Haas

Written by Elizabeth Zahradnicek-Haas Published on 03.10.2016 15:51:39 (updated on 03.10.2016) Reading time: 1 minute

For many the beauty of Uber is that it ends in a cashless transaction; payment is sent virtually via a mobile app. In Prague, however, the company is hoping to accomodate a “conservative” Czech clientele that would prefer to pay drivers in cash.

Beginning last week, randomly selected Uber passengers in Prague now have the opportunity to pay in cash. Depending on the success of the testing phase, cash payments could become a permanent option, reports iHned.cz

The pilot program will also be offered in Russia and African and Asian countries.

Another new innovation that Uber hopes will appeal to the local market is the option for passengers to schedule a ride up to 30 days in advance.

Launching on the Czech market in 2014, Uber has faced a number of challenges in its first two years of operation in Prague.

Stiff competition from start-ups Liftago and Taxify coupled with criticism by city officials who say that the company, which bills itself as a technology platform, should be subject to regulation have led to speculation that it could disappear from the market.

Despite recent reports that Uber drivers have left the company en masse, Uber maintains that business is flourishing and denies that it has introduced these features because Czechs have no interest in their service.

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