PHOTO
14 August 2017
Saudi Arabia's main international airports are to offer dedicated Uber pick-up and drop-off points, following a deal signed on Tuesday between the ride-hailing app and the kingdom's aviation authority.
The agreement with the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) covers all of the airports managed by the authority, including its international airports in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Taif and Qassim and will be in place for the next three months.
Sakhr Bin Abdulrahman Al Mulhim, the general manager of commercial airports operations for GACA, said the agreement "aims to facilitate the transfer of passengers to and from kingdom airports and to make it more efficient for passengers and airport attendants”.
"The agreement will help in continuing to provide opportunities that firms like Uber are providing for Saudis around the kingdom, and allow Uber partner-drivers to reliably pick-up and drop-off riders," he said.
Zeid Hreish, general manager at Uber in Saudi Arabia, said that airports around the kingdom "welcome thousands of travelers on a daily basis, and technologies like Uber allow for more flexibility, reliability, and safety when commuting to and from those airports".
He said that Uber has about 80,000 driver-partners in the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund bought a 5 percent stake in Uber in June last year, paying $3.5 billion for the privilege.
Since its investment, the US-based ride-hailing company has faced a number of publicity scandals, which eventually led to founder Travis Kalanick stepping down as chief executive of the company in June.
Last week, it was reported that investor Benchmark Capital filed a lawsuit against Kalanick, who remains a shareholder and sits on its board, accusing him of seeking to retain power even after his resignation.
Uber's board issued a statement requesting that the shareholders "resolve the matter cooperatively and quickly" and offering to mitigate in the dispute.
© Zawya 2017
Saudi Arabia's main international airports are to offer dedicated Uber pick-up and drop-off points, following a deal signed on Tuesday between the ride-hailing app and the kingdom's aviation authority.
The agreement with the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) covers all of the airports managed by the authority, including its international airports in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Taif and Qassim and will be in place for the next three months.
Sakhr Bin Abdulrahman Al Mulhim, the general manager of commercial airports operations for GACA, said the agreement "aims to facilitate the transfer of passengers to and from kingdom airports and to make it more efficient for passengers and airport attendants”.
"The agreement will help in continuing to provide opportunities that firms like Uber are providing for Saudis around the kingdom, and allow Uber partner-drivers to reliably pick-up and drop-off riders," he said.
Zeid Hreish, general manager at Uber in Saudi Arabia, said that airports around the kingdom "welcome thousands of travelers on a daily basis, and technologies like Uber allow for more flexibility, reliability, and safety when commuting to and from those airports".
He said that Uber has about 80,000 driver-partners in the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund bought a 5 percent stake in Uber in June last year, paying $3.5 billion for the privilege.
Since its investment, the US-based ride-hailing company has faced a number of publicity scandals, which eventually led to founder Travis Kalanick stepping down as chief executive of the company in June.
Last week, it was reported that investor Benchmark Capital filed a lawsuit against Kalanick, who remains a shareholder and sits on its board, accusing him of seeking to retain power even after his resignation.
Uber's board issued a statement requesting that the shareholders "resolve the matter cooperatively and quickly" and offering to mitigate in the dispute.
© Zawya 2017
