UberX hits major hurdle after Sydney Airport pick-up ban

THE controversial ride-sharing service UberX has hit a major hurdle by being banned from picking up passengers at Sydney Airport.

THE controversial ride-sharing service UberX has hit a major hurdle by being banned from picking up passengers at Sydney Airport.

An airport spokesman said that it “welcomes all accredited drivers who operate within the airport’s designated pick up areas and comply with all appropriate government regulations.”

While UberX drivers can drop off passengers at the airport, Uber head office actually electronically blocks its app users from ordering cars from the terminals.

Airport pick-ups are still a lucrative market for Sydney cabbies, but UberX’s cheaper cost has let it make major inroads in its battle against taxis.

A special Saturday Telegraph investigation shows that the illegal ridesharing business charges passengers up to 30 per cent less than cabs.

Five UberX journeys were booked this week, to five separate destinations.

Five taxis were then hailed from city streets or cab ranks, to make the same journey, at roughly the same time of day.

The cheapest UberX journey was 29.5 per cent less than the equivalent taxi fare.

The other UberX journeys had an average saving of close to 18 per cent.

The cost comparison.

Only one journey cost more, after an inexperienced UberX driver took a route to Sydney Olympic Park that caught him in heavy traffic.

But taxi operators are quick to point out it is risky to ride with what they describe as a “Claytons” taxi service — because the drivers have no official accreditation.

The taxi industry also believes that Uber’s 4000 drivers do not have adequate insurance cover for their passengers and that they are inexperienced and do not know their way around the city.

If your looking for a Taxi Cab In Sydney, they’re all at the Airport.

State Transport Minister Andrew Constance has hinted that UberX could be given the legal go-ahead to operate in NSW as part of a shake-up of the taxi industry.

The possibility of the service becoming legal in NSW comes in the wake of the ACT moving on Wednesday to legalise the service.

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During the investigation a trip to Royal North Shore hospital with an UberX driver cost $30.15. The same ride, by the same route and at the same time, but in a taxi, ended up at $42.74.

A trip from RNS to Central railway via UberX came with a bill for $27.97 including the Harbour Bridge toll but it cost $36.75 in the cab.