Uber sticks by its guns with "foolish, bizarre" cheap service

Uber has continued to pilot its motorcycle ride-hailing service in parts of Johannesburg despite warnings from road safety experts that the offering is "foolish" and "bizarre." The local Uber Moto pilot was rolled out on the western side of the city's central business district in mid-January 2025, offering rides starting from R18. While Uber initially announced the pilot in a blog post, this was removed shortly after reports of the service began doing the rounds.

However, the company has recently confirmed that the trial continues to run, without providing reasons for why it removed the announcement of the pilot. While Uber emphasised that safety was a top priority for the service, Motorcycle Safety Institute of South Africa founder and chief instructor Hein Jonker is not so convinced. "It's about making money; it is not about the life carried by an incompetent and underqualified rider in an unsafe environment on a most likely incapable motorcycle," Jonker told MyBroadband.



"There are just too many variables to address and too few laws or regulations to effectively manage such a programme," Jonker said. "I can say with confidence it will fail." His concerns were echoed by Driving.

co.za managing director Rob Handfield-Jones, which said Uber Moto was a..

. Hanno Labuschagne.