On-demand boat ride in Egypt, another first from world most famous taxi-hailing service Uber. Commuters in the capital Cairo now have a fun way of beating traffic in the city; they call up a boat ride via their Uber app.
The service, dubbed UberBOAT, enables commuters hail/request for a boat the same way they do for Uber taxi ride. Uber has partnered with the Nile Taxi, a private transport company providing boat rides service across the Nile River. A strategic move on Uber parts, given it, does not make or own boats.
“We are very excited to partner up with Nile Taxi to launch UberBoat in Cairo, providing our riders with more options to commute within Cairo without traffic,” said Abdellatif Waked, the General Manager of Uber Egypt.
UberBOAT service went live on May 17. The services are currently available at ten main docking stations in Downtown, Giza, Maadi, Garden City, and Zamalek. These docking stations include the Nile City Towers at the Nile Corniche, Four Seasons in Garden City, TGI Fridays, and Yacht Club (members only) in Maadi among others.
To order an Uber boat, users only need to use the app and request UberBOAT and select the docking station and specify their destination. Typically, a boat arrives within 15 minutes, and you begin your cruise to your destination and avoid the menace Cairo traffic as you enjoy the scenic beauty of the Nile River.
“We are continuously working to make Cairo more accessible in various ways, and since our launch in Egypt, we have been introducing different transportation methods, such as Uber Tuktuk, Uber Hantour, and now UberBoat to provide our riders with reliable and comfortable transportation options.”
Not to forget, in Kenya, you can also order an Uber Chopper ride from the app.