After expiring at the end of January, Uber’s licence to operate in Birmingham has been recently renewed by the city council. This comes after Uber’s licence was not renewed in London last November after Transport for London (TfL) said a ‘pattern of failures’ had risked passenger safety.

A spokesman for Birmingham City Council said: ‘We can confirm we have issued a 12-month licence.’ Uber has operated in Birmingham since 2015, and Uber’s general manager said she was ‘delighted’ at Uber’s continued presence in the city.

We can confirm we have issued a 12-month licence

However, Uber is currently appealing against TfL’s decision to not renew their licence in London. This was due to safety concerns about Uber’s operating systems, as unauthorised and uninsured drivers had made at least 14,000 fraudulent trips across late 2018 and early 2019. There have also been particular concerns about the safety of female passengers travelling alone with Uber. One woman told the BBC: ‘I complained a couple of months ago about a driver who made me feel so uncomfortable I abandoned the ride and walked home in the dark at 11 o’clock at night instead of staying in his cab.’

Others have defended Uber, including one second-year student who said: ‘I think Uber having their licence renewed in Birmingham is great! Uber is an affordable and easy way for students such as myself to get around. In an era where we are trying to save the environment, we should be using more services like Uber so that we don’t have to buy cars.’

Melinda Roylett, the UK and Ireland Uber general manager, said: ‘There is nothing more important than the safety of the riders and drivers who use the Uber app, and we know that when it comes to safety, our work is never done.’