Uber Japan announced on March 12, 2024, that it has signed a comprehensive collaboration agreement regarding ridesharing with Kaga City in Ishikawa Prefecture. Starting from the same day, they will commence full-scale operations of “Ridesharing in Kaga City.” Anticipating an increase in tourism demand due to the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen, they aim to address the shortage of bus and taxi drivers.
The Kaga Onsen Station on the Hokuriku Shinkansen line is scheduled to open on March 16, 2024. With this opening, travel time from Osaka Station will be reduced to 2 hours and 6 minutes using a combination of conventional express trains and the Hokuriku Shinkansen, while access from Tokyo Station will be 2 hours and 43 minutes via the Hokuriku Shinkansen alone. An increase in tourists from both domestic and international sources is expected. However, local bus and taxi operators are facing a shortage of drivers, making it difficult to provide sufficient transportation services.
In response, Uber Japan, the Kaga City Tourism Exchange Organization, and Kaga Daiichi Kotsu have decided to offer the Kaga City version of ridesharing using the Uber app. Positioned as complementary to taxi services, ridesharing will be available from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM at major tourist attractions and residential areas within Kaga City, and from 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM throughout Kaga City. The service will not operate between 11:00 PM and 7:00 AM. Future plans include considering transportation to neighboring hot spring resorts outside Kaga City.
Users will be able to board and alight at designated locations set in the app, and a dedicated ridesharing pickup area will also be established at Kaga Onsen Station. Matching passengers with drivers, requesting rides, and payment services will all be facilitated through the Uber app. This service will be available not only to tourists but also to local residents and those who have evacuated as a result of the Noto Peninsula earthquake.
Source: Monoist
https://monoist.itmedia.co.jp/mn/articles/2403/13/news108.html
