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RAMADAN

How Ramadan has made it harder to find Uber drivers in Paris at night

Taxi ride app Uber has noticed a big drop in the number of drivers available in Paris at evenings and customers have seen the cost of their ride home jump. There’s a simple explanation.

How Ramadan has made it harder to find Uber drivers in Paris at night
Photo:AFP

You don’t normally have to wait too long in Paris for your Uber driver to turn up, even in the evening.

But since last Saturday that’s changed slightly.

Users of the taxi ride app have noticed how drivers are much harder to come by and even bosses of the company have seen the change.

“Yes we have observed this trend,” Uber told Le Parisien newspaper.

“This is also the same case during certain cultural and sporting events, when drivers will disconnect from the app,” said Uber.

This time it’s all to do with the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The reason why many drivers make themselves unavailable in the evening is all to do with the fasting that observers are required to do.

Those Muslims strictly observing Ramadan must avoid intake of any food or water from dawn until sunset, which in Paris right now is between 9.30pm and 10pm.

When fasting ends Muslims will normally immediately take time to eat and drink.

While many Muslim Uber drivers will replenish their energy quickly and get back on the road, others will take time to have a meal with their families, hence the reason why it might be harder to find an Uber cab after 9.30pm.

“It’s logical that Ramadan could have an impact,” said Uber France’s Grégoire Kopp previously. “That’s due to the fact the majority of drivers using Uber's app are from suburbs, meaning potentially North African and of Muslim faith.”

Uber has successfully recruited thousands of drivers throughout immigrant suburbs around Paris and other French cities, due in part to the fact the app offers rare prospect of work for those living in areas of high-unemployment and where many locals with North African origins complain of discrimination when applying for regular jobs.

Union leader Sayah Baaroun had a message for any Parisians who might feel like complaining about the price hike of their ride home from the brasserie or the extra wait they might have to endure.

“Are these people who are complaining because they have to wait five minutes even thinking about the health of the drivers?” Baaroun told Le Parisien.

“Uber targets the [Muslim] community in its recruitment and they are treated as cannon fodder so they have the right to enjoy this moment.”

COST OF LIVING

Uber poised for Swiss expansion

Long plagued by legal issues and driver shortages, ride sharing service Uber is set to expand into more of Switzerland’s French-speaking towns.

Uber poised for Swiss expansion
Photo by Humphrey Muleba on Unsplash

Long plagued by legal issues and driver shortages, ride sharing service Uber is set to expand into more of Switzerland’s French-speaking towns. 

The ride sharing service announced on Wednesday it would expand into the predominantly French-speaking towns of Fribourg, Sion and Yverdon. 

A spokesman for the American service told Swiss media outlet Watson the expansion was fuelled by demand. 

In Sion and Fribourg, while rides can be booked via the app, they will be carried out by taxis in order to comply with local regulations. 

“Our launch will enable taxi drivers to increase the use of their vehicles, win new customers and thus generate more sales thanks to our technology,” said Jean-Pascal Aribot, Director of Uber Switzerland. 

Uber currently operates freely in the German-speaking cities of Basel, Bern, Lucerne, Winterthur and Zurich. 

Legal issues and driver shortages

Uber’s expansion in Switzerland has been slower than in some neighbouring countries.  

Drivers have complained that Switzerland’s high cost of living makes it more difficult to make ends meet, while the company has also been plagued by frequent legal issues. 

The service is currently banned in Geneva due to concerns about payments for drivers, although the ban has been suspended regarding an appeal. 

Geneva classifies Uber as an employer, meaning that drivers should be entitled to benefits including paid holidays, sick leave and pensions. 

The company disputes this and says its drivers are independent contractors. 

In February, voters in Zurich approved a plan to place more restrictions on Uber in the canton. 

The new restrictions include that drivers need to register with cantonal authorities and place obvious signs on their vehicles to distinguish them from regular cars.

The vote, which took place only in the canton of Zurich as part of the February 9 round of referendums, sought to bring regulation for Uber and other ride-sharing services in line with taxis and other limousine services. 

A total of 51.6 percent of voters approved the initiative, while 42.4 percent were opposed. 

The initiative also ‘cantonalised’ taxi regulation, meaning that the municipalities of Zurich will no longer set conditions for taxi companies. Unlike previously, taxis are now allowed to use ranks anywhere in the canton. 

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