At the Luxembourg City central station, it’s business as usual: a dozen taxis are parked in single file, waiting for fares. “I’ve been here for over two hours,” says one of them, Joao Souza, who has been a taxi driver for over ten years. “I’ve been waiting. After Uber gets here tomorrow… how long will we have to wait?” Souza is pessimistic about the arrival of the American giant, which is emblematic of the modern gig economy. “It’s worrying everyone. We already have free public transport, which is competition. And what few customers we do have, they’re likely to take.” Globally, Uber usually charges lower prices than professional taxis, though in Luxembourg the rates--in conjunction with Webtaxi--have not yet been announced. However, some professionals are already fearing the worst.
Isabelle Santos fears unfair competition. Photo: Maëlle Hamma/Maison Moderne
“It could affect drivers’ incomes--not in a good way--via different working conditions,” says Isabelle Santos, who has worked as a taxi driver for six months. “We know that Uber sometimes exploits drivers elsewhere, so that’s a bit scary. It’s a form of unfair competition.”
Next to her is another driver, who prefers to remain anonymous, waiting for a fare. He is apprehensive as well: “It’s scary. Uber is only supposed to work with Webtaxi, which is already a big player in the country [editor’s note: Webtaxi has 203 licences and 270 drivers]. So we’re a bit worried that they’ll take all the customers, because the Uber name is well-known all over the world--that customers will sometimes have the reflex to turn to Uber.”
“The problem today is also that our prices are not explicit enough,” says Souza. “Of course they’re displayed; that’s required.” He indicates the poster on his dashboard with a large print showing a fare of €55. “People think that just by getting into a taxi, they will pay at least €55. But that’s for ten kilometres. On the Uber app, you are given a price directly according to the journey requested. But we taxi drivers are perfectly capable of doing the same. We need to learn to communicate our prices better.”
In Luxembourg, taxi operators are free to set their own prices, but their price list must resemble the model above and be prominently displayed. It details the pick-up fare payable automatically, the price per km and the surcharge at night or on Sundays and public holidays. The price displayed in the centre corresponds to the rate for 10km. The operator’s name and licence number must appear at the top (blurred out). Photo: Maëlle Hamma/Maison Moderne
In addition to Uber’s prices being potentially lower than the current local standard, the notoriety of the platform is also a cause for concern. “I don’t really fear any change in prices,” says Armando Nunes, who has been a taxi driver for a few months. “For me the only thing that’s really going to change is the app. I think the people who were already using our taxis will continue to do so. Where it may change is for tourists who are used to using Uber in other countries and who will also want to use it here. But if I’ve understood correctly, Uber won’t work in the same way as in other countries, because they’ll be linked to Webtaxi. In my opinion, the big winner from Uber’s arrival in Luxembourg will be Webtaxi. But frankly, that doesn’t really worry me.”
José Veiga, a ten-year veteran of the job, sees Uber as an opportunity. “It depends on how they work. But if it happens as announced, I don’t think it will be competition. On the contrary. If Webtaxi does Uber’s job by making its cars and drivers available, they will be able to travel more throughout the country, and will have fewer cars available, for example, in the station area or at the airport. And we will be able to take advantage of these customers.” Veiga says he is waiting to see how the market will react.
Unlike many of his colleagues, José Veiga is not particularly worried about the arrival of Uber. Photo: Maëlle Hamma/Maison Moderne
A need for recognition and reform
While we were chatting to some drivers, another of them--annoyed--called out to us. Saïd (who prefers not to divulge his surname) seems to see the arrival of Uber as an additional difficulty in the daily lives of drivers. “We have millionaires who are going to become even bigger millionaires! It’s not logical at all,” he says. His testimony, like that of other drivers we met at the station, points to another problem beyond the arrival of Uber: a need for greater recognition of the profession.
For Saïd, who is Moroccan and worked as a taxi driver in Spain before moving to Luxembourg, the sector is “very badly” organised. “We don’t have anyone to talk to and we’re not well regarded. Look, we don’t even have toilets for the drivers,” he adds, pointing to the station. “I’ve never seen that anywhere else. Here, everything is very individual; it’s every man for himself. Webtaxi already has a lower pricing policy. If they lower it further with Uber, we’ll end up panhandling.”
For Joao Souza, there is an urgent need to reform the 2016 law on taxis. Photo: Maëlle Hamma/Maison Moderne
In the Chamber of Deputies, the bill amending the law of 5 July 2016 on the organisation of taxi services is still in committee. “We need to reform the 2016 law because there has been a lot of abuse and anyone can have a card,” says Souza. “We need to be fair… introducing examinations for drivers would also be a good thing. We’re not just transporting someone from A to B, we’re providing a real service. We need to know the territory and have suitable vehicles.”
The bill in question provides for the introduction of a compulsory examination for taxi and VLC drivers, as well as the abolition of geographical validity zones, the abolition of the limit on the number of licences issued and improved vehicle signage.
This article in Paperjam. It has been translated and edited for Delano.