Taxi drivers in Bucharest have lost many clients after the popular ride sharing app Uber entered the local market in early 2015. However, they have decided to fight back by making life hard for Uber drivers.

Several taxi drivers have started using the Uber app to get the Uber drivers caught by the police, according to Stirileprotv.ro. The scheme is simple: a taxi driver orders an Uber ride, he gets into the car and says he needs to get to a certain location in Bucharest. Meanwhile, he passes the car registration number to his colleagues, who make sure a traffic police car is waiting for the Uber driver at the destination.

The Uber drivers risk paying big fines if caught transporting other people for money because the taxi law in Romania requires that the people who provide transport services for money should have authorization for this. Uber drivers don’t have authorization to carry people. If an Uber driver gets caught a second time, the police can fine him RON 1,000 (EUR 225) to RON 5,000 (EUR 1,125).

Taxi drivers have been complaining that there are about 1,200 Uber cars in Bucharest which steal their clients and the public transport clients without paying any taxes.

However, Uber claims that its drivers don’t offer transport services for money, but that they do “ride sharing”. This means that the drivers share their cars with other people who contribute to the ride cost (car maintenance + fuel costs). Uber representatives say that what the taxi drivers are doing is an abuse.

The controversy will likely continue as more and more people in Bucharest use Uber instead of taxis. Moreover, other similar apps have started entering the market, such as Taxify, while Uber expanded its service in Cluj-Napoca.

The police say they can’t stop Uber drivers in traffic as they can’t recognize them. The Uber cars don’t have any distinctive signs such as taxis. Thus, the only way to identify the drivers is if the clients themselves call the police.

Uber goes low cost in Bucharest to draw more users and drivers

editor@romania-insider.com