Uber South Africa has announced its budget e-hailing ride service UberNam has been renamed to UberGo and is now available nationwide. We are excited to announce that UberGo, a low-cost product available in Port Elizabeth since 2017, has become a permanent option across South Africa,” the company stated. We have therefore decided to change the name of UberNam to UberGo, to follow Uber global standards,” the company stated.
Uber said that the product’s previous name had also led to confusion regarding another ride-sharing product UberPool, which is not yet available in South Africa.
Starting from Monday 22 February, South African users will see the UberGo option instead of UberNam when they open the Uber app. The service will be run alongside Uber’s current ride-hailing products – the standard UberX service, UberVan, and it’s luxury UberBlack offering.
MyBroadband previously compared the UberNam service with Bolt’s own affordable e-hailing option which also carries the “Go” name.
The latter was found to be more affordable, although both were substantially cheaper than their standard services. UberGo drivers use smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles, which allow riders to get better prices than on the standard service. According to Uber’s vehicle requirements page, this includes a number of 5-door hatchback models stretching back to 2013, as well as 4-door sedan models going back to 2011.
The list of accepted hatchbacks includes the Ford Figo, VW Polo and Polo Vivo, Toyota Yaris and Etios, Suzuki Dzire and Celeria, Mazda 3, Kia Picanto, Nissan Micra, as well as the Hyundai i10 and i20.
The Renault Kwid and Datsun Go are specifically excluded, likely due to their low safety ratings. Riders and drivers can expect the same door-to-door safety features such as an in-app emergency button, Injury Protection, 24/7 support, including driver background checks and screenings,” Uber said.
“We remain committed to delivering more affordable options with the same safety standards while unlocking further earning opportunities for driver-partners across South Africa,” an Uber spokesperson added.
In other news – Police officer dies after being shot by GBV suspect
Responding to a domestic violence case, two officers accompanied the victim home.
But a shot was fired from the woman’s house in Welbedacht East in Chatsworth on Thursday last week, which struck Constable Mfihloyakhe Ndlovu (45) in the upper body, killing him. Learn more
Source: businesstech
