Uber has announced that prices for riding with the company are about to go up by 15p per mile as part of a new ‘Clean Air Plan’.

The clean air fee applies to any journey booked in London through the Uber app, with bosses saying that the increase in price will go towards helping drivers upgrade to electric cars.

On an average trip in London, this will mean a clean air fee will add around 45p to people’s fares, the company has said.

Uber is planning on going green (Picture: Getty)

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi says the clean air initiative puts Uber in a position to be a ‘strong partner’ to Transport for London.




He hopes every car used by drivers on the app will be electric by 2025.

Towns and cities across northern England and Wales to face new restrictions this weekend

The amount of support drivers will receive towards the cost of an electric car will be based on the number of miles they drive for Uber.

A driver using the app for an average of 40 hours per week could expect around £3,000 of support towards an EV in two years’ time and £4,500 in three years.

Mr Khosrowshahi said he hoped to raise more than £200,000,000 in the next few years to help drivers buy electric cars.

But he also told reporters in London today that he will fight proposals to make Uber drivers pay the congestion charge unless black cabs do too.

Uber has long come under fire from London’s black taxi drivers, who have in the past questioned regulation and the quality of the company’s drivers who undercut them on price.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi announced the clean air plan in London today (Picture: Getty)

In Mr Khosrowshahi’s announcement to tackle air pollution he attempted to align himself with London Mayor Sadiq Khan.

‘The Mayor of London has set out a bold vision to tackle air pollution in the capital and we’re determined to do everything we can to back it,’ he said.

‘Our £200 million Clean Air Plan is a long-term investment in the future of London aimed at going all electric in the capital in 2025.

‘Over time, it’s our goal to help people replace their car with their phone by offering a range of mobility options – whether cars, bikes, scooters or public transport – all in the Uber app.’

Chris Large, Senior Partner at Global Action Plan, the charity behind Clean Air Day, said: ‘Two major barriers slowing the uptake of electric cars are still the purchase price and the substandard charging network.

‘Uber’s efforts to overcome these barriers should be commended.

‘The aim for London Uber journeys to use only fully electric cars by 2025 is one of the most ambitious aims of any major company in the future mobility sector.’

Uber has also pledged to scrap 1,000 of the most polluting cars from London’s roads in its diesel scrappage scheme which will also launch early next year.

The first 1,000 people in London to scrap a pre-Euro 4 diesel vehicle and provide an official scrappage certificate will receive up to £1,500 of credit to spend on Uber or uberPOOL rides, it says.



Uber’s announcement comes after a spike in air pollution in the UK in 2017, when London was more polluted than Beijing for a short period of time.

Got a story for Metro.co.uk? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page.