On a sunny day in Rhodes Island, Greece, a gaggle of taxi homeowners and drivers channeled their internal Hulks and wreaked havoc in a car parking zone, overturning and smashing Uber automobiles like they have been toys. Previous to the incident, three Uber drivers had been arrested by the police for violating site visitors legal guidelines and providing cheaper-than-permitted rides to the island’s airport, whereas taxi drivers organized a rally towards Uber’s presence in Rhodes.
Native media shops Dimokratiki and Rodiak captured the stunning aftermath of the Greek taxi drivers’ rampage exterior Uber Greece’s premises in Rhodes. The photographs present a VW T-Roc and a Volvo XC40 flipped over on their roofs, with their logos suggesting that they have been leased for use by Uber. A number of different automobiles and SUVs have been additionally vandalized, with shattered home windows and damaged mirrors. Among the many broken autos have been a Mercedes CLA, three GLAs, a Peugeot 3008, and a Skoda Octavia. A scooter was additionally discovered vandalized, however it’s unclear if it was associated to the corporate. The scene resembled extra of a Hollywood motion film than a sunny day in Greece.
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Pictures by Dimokratiki
The vandalism was allegedly attributable to a gaggle of enraged taxi homeowners and drivers on Thursday, April 27. Based on studies, the incident was sparked by an Uber driver giving the finger to native taxi drivers whereas breaking site visitors legal guidelines, resulting in his arrest by police. However that was only the start of the chaos. Two extra Uber drivers have been arrested on Wednesday for providing discounted fares to the airport, charging solely €20 ($22) as an alternative of the corporate’s minimal charge of €36 ($40), as reported by Dimokratiki.
Past the latest incidents of Uber automobiles being trashed on Rhodes Island, it’s clear that there’s been long-standing pressure between Greek taxi syndicates and the ride-sharing big. Since launching in Rhodes and Corfu on April 25, 2023, Uber has been ruffling feathers with its enterprise mannequin, which is vastly totally different from the native taxi laws in Greece. Whereas acquiring a taxi allow in Athens can value as much as a whopping €100k ($110k), working with Uber is significantly cheaper and requires far fewer hoops to leap by means of.
In response to the vandalism on Rhodes Island, Uber Greece launched an announcement condemning the incident in Rhodes, stating that nothing justifies acts of violence underneath any circumstances. The ride-sharing big has pledged to work with the authorities to establish these answerable for the vandalism, emphasizing that threats and aggression shouldn’t be tolerated. On the similar time, Uber Greece additionally expressed its dedication to supporting native taxi drivers by means of cooperation.
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The native taxi syndicate in Rhodes has a special tackle the state of affairs, saying they’ll proceed to oppose Uber’s presence within the area with out mentioning the vandalism. They argue that the multinational firm’s entry into the market has created unfair and unregulated competitors in a market with sturdy seasonal traits. Based on the taxi syndicate, greater than 700 households in Rhodes rely upon the taxi enterprise for his or her livelihoods. The taxi drivers have vowed to proceed their struggle towards Uber with extra demonstrations and strikes.
It appears just like the battle between conventional taxis and ride-sharing providers is way from over