Indian Ride-hailing service provider Ola is moving to the UK market to challenge Uber, another giant in the ride-hailing services across the globe.

United Kingdom: The country is getting an alternative to Uber after India-based ride-hailing company Ola announced plans to expand to the country, which will become its first market in Europe. Ola will first launch in Greater Manchester and South Wales however is yet to present an application for a London permit.

Ola was established in 2010 and it covers more than 110 urban communities in India where it offers authorized taxicabs, private contract autos and two wheelers through a system of more than one million drivers. The organization has raised around $3 billion from speculators that incorporate SoftBank, Chinese pair Tencent and Didi Chuxing and DST Global. It was last esteemed at $7 billion. Ola wandered abroad out of the blue when it propelled in Australia not long ago, it is currently in seven urban communities there and its turn into the UK flags a further expansion in Europe.

The company’s CEO added that the company will try to launch all the new services which will help the company to meet the country’s demand in mobility needs. Unlike Uber the company will offer a choice of a private hire vehicle or black taxi.

To expand in the European market, Ola is working hard with local authorities across the UK. This move of the company is a straight challenge in the UK to market-leading taxi-hailing app Uber, which was founded two years earlier than Ola and has 3 million drivers and the company operates in 65 countries.

Both Ola and Uber count Softbank as an investor. Softbank is a major backer of the world's leading taxi-hailing apps, like Didi and Grab, although it has not invested in Uber's chief US rival on its home soil, Lyft.

According to TechSci Research, the expansion by Ola in United Kingdom is expected to boost the future of ride hailing services. The mobility-on demand market is expected to witness robust growth in the coming years because of increasing demand for alternate transportation means to curb the air pollution levels as well as to provide better transportation services through a reliable and fast mobile platform. people prominently prefer e-hailing cabs and are adopting the car sharing services as they offer a convenient mode of transport. E-hailing cabs are widely popular across the globe, and Uber, Gett and Lyft are some of the key players in global e-hailing cab industry. Globally, people are inclining towards car sharing as it helps in reducing the traffic and is a cost-effective alternative.

According to the recently published report by TechSci Research, “Global Mobility on Demand Market Forecast & Opportunities, 2022”, Global mobility on demand market is expected to cross $ 228 billion by 2022, on account of growing traffic congestions, continuous initiatives being taken by several vehicles manufacturing players and increasing inclination of consumers. Asia-Pacific region accounted for the largest share in global mobility on demand market in 2016; and China and Japan registered more than half of the demand for mobility on demand services in the region in the same year. Moreover, the region is anticipated to maintain its dominance in global mobility on demand market during the forecast period as well.

According to the recently published report by TechSci Research, “Global Ride Hailing Market, By Vehicle Type (Passenger Cars, etc.), By Service Type (E-hailing, etc.), By Internet Connectivity (3G, etc.), By Vehicle Connectivity (V2V, V2I, etc.), By Company and By Geography, Forecast & Opportunities, 2017-2023”, Global ride hailing market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 21% to reach $136 billion by 2023, on the back of growing popularity of ride hailing services as well as the service providers such as Uber, Didi and Lyft. Moreover, surging demand for ride hailing services on a global level can be attributed to ease of booking, enhanced passenger comfort, increasing traffic congestion, rising government initiatives aimed at increasing awareness regarding the harmful effects of air pollution levels and development of semi-autonomous and autonomous vehicles. Increasing number of partnerships between domestic and international service providers, such as Uber and Didi in China, are also expected to aid the global ride hailing market during the forecast period.