Taxi drivers in Denmark are losing their battle with the on-demand car service Uber – especially in Copenhagen.
According to Taxinævnet, the industry’s regulatory body, cabbies in the Capital Region have lost out on 500,000 fares over the past year – about 20 percent of their annual revenue.
At an average price of 190 kroner per fare, the local industry has lost an estimated 95 million kroner.
Taxinævnet blames the negative results on Uber, which has been offering its car-pooling services in Denmark since 2014.
The company keeps on operating in the capital, even though Copenhagen Police considers the service illegal and a number of Uber drivers have already been charged with providing ‘unlicenced taxi services’.
READ MORE: Uber has 200,000 registered users in Denmark
Breaking rules
“It especially affects the night and evening [taxi] drivers, who used to earn good money as compensation for a weak turnover during the week, but not anymore,” Trine Wollenberg, the head of the Danish Taxi Council, told Metroxpress.
Jakob Hougaard, a member of Taxinævnet, accuses Uber of unfair competition by breaking the rules taxi drivers must follow.
“Uber has nearly the same number of cars as taxis in Copenhagen, and it is a massive problem,” Hougaard told Metroexpress.
Carl Endresen, the head of Uber in Denmark, rejects the criticism, claiming that Uber drivers do not offer regular taxi services on the streets, but have to be ordered via an app.
