Uber aims to have app used in place of Opal, Myki tickets

Uber aims to have its app used in place of Opal and Myki tickets, and is in discussions with Australian public transport agencies.

Uber aims to have people use its app to buy public transport tickets. Picture: AFP.

US transportation giant Uber is aiming to have its app used in place of Opal and Myki tickets, with the company confirming it is in discussions with Australian public transport agencies.

The California tech titan announced its public transport plans at the CES gadget show – the world’s largest gadget summit – launching ‘Uber Transit’ in Las Vegas and declaring it was working on bringing the functionality Down Under.

Once purely an app for booking cabs, Uber now wants to be your app of choice whether you’re booking a bus, train, or tram, or getting food delivered.

With Uber Transit, riders enter a destination and will see ‘transit’ as an option if available. Then, after choosing it, riders will be able to purchase a train, tram or bus ticket through the Uber app rather than needing a Myki or Opal card.

David Reich, Uber’s Head of Transit, told The Australian that some people might be surprised by the company’s move into public transport, but said it was more of a natural fit than one might think.

He said that public transport was often cheaper or quicker than getting a car via Uber.

“Public transport agencies all want to provide as good a service as possible, but they’re doing so with declining budgets and growing populations. They’re trying to figure out how they can be more cost efficient with how they’re spending money,” Mr Reich said.

“We’ll be increasing the pace of launches in 2020.”

Sydney public transport riders can already pay for trips with their credit or debit cards thanks to changes made last September, while Melbourne users can use their Android smartphones to tap on and off.

The executive added that purchasing transit passes via Uber will cost the same amount as through existing options, and that the new feature was part of Uber’s plans to be the ‘operating system for everyday life.’ The company does receive a cut of each ticket sold.

The company, now in its tenth year, is aiming to change its fortunes in 2020 following numerous rounds of staff cuts last year, a falling share price and mounting losses.

“We launched Uber Transit ticketing in time for CES because this is a core part of our vision for the future of Uber and the future of transportation,” a local Uber spokesman told The Australian in a statement.

“CES has been known as the global stage for innovation; we believe that integrating Uber’s technology to help transform public transportation systems is innovation that will help cities evolve by reducing individual car ownership and expanding transportation access.

“As an operating system for everyday life Uber wants to deepen our connection with cities to provide Australians and New Zealanders with the ability to seamlessly ride on the many available forms of public transit – ferries, trains, trams and buses – that connect users to the people, places and moments that matter.

“We’re committed to continuing to work hard to push for added functionality and deployment of Uber Transit in our region in the near future.”

David Swan travelled to Las Vegas as a guest of Uber.