Uber isn't safe enough to operate in London, authorities say

Uber just got the red light in London — again.

Transport for London has decided not to renew Uber's license to operate, with the transportation authorities citing a "pattern of failures by the company including several breaches that placed passengers and their safety at risk."

Uber will be allowed to continue operating in London while appealing the decision, CNN notes. London previously decided not to renew the ridesharing service's license to operate in 2017, though Uber successfully appealed the decision, and it most recently received a two-month license in September.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

One safety issue Transport of London cited was that "a change to Uber's systems allowed unauthorized drivers to upload their photos to other Uber driver accounts," meaning drivers could "pick up passengers as though they were the booked driver." This occurred on at least 14,000 trips, Transport for London said. Another issue cited is dismissed or suspended drivers being able to create accounts, "again compromising passenger safety and security."

Uber criticized the decision Monday as "extraordinary and wrong," saying "we have fundamentally changed our business over the last two years and are setting the standard on safety." But Transport of London said that although some safety concerns have been addressed, it "does not have confidence that similar issues will not reoccur in the future," leading to the conclusion that Uber "is not fit and proper at this time."

London Mayor Sadiq Khan added Monday, "I know this decision may be unpopular with Uber users, but their safety is the paramount concern."