It won't be easy to get there, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said on a call with reporters, but it's a big part of Uber's plan to help cities reinvent themselves post-COVID in order to combat climate change. And it centers on getting more drivers in electric vehicles.
Uber's strategy to hit its goal spans the whole company. It's expanding the Uber Green system for requesting green rides, investing $800 million in getting Uber drivers into electric vehicles, and even working with a bunch of partners in the electric-car industry — GM, Renault, Nissan, BP, Avis and more — to make maintenance and ownership easier.
The 2040 deadline is increasingly a tech industry standard: With its Climate Pledge, Amazon committed to being carbon-neutral by 2040, and others have signed on to the same timeline. Apple and Microsoft are aiming for 2030.
Much of what Uber's rolling out has been tested in Europe, where Uber is trying to be emissions-free in seven cities by 2025. It's excited about the progress of the Clean Air Plan in London, for instance, which charges riders extra for every ride picked up in London to help drivers buy an electric vehicle. The same program is now expanding to France. Uber's also improving its transit directions, with trips involving walking, public transit and Uber rides now available. The overall idea for Uber: Getting people out of gas-guzzling cars by any means possible.
Climate TRACE's data show emissions at the facility-level.Image: Climate TRACE