Uber Flying Taxi Service To Go Live In California And Texas By 2023

Uber’s flying taxis are taking off, as the transportation upstart looks for new ways to shorten trips made long because of distance or traffic congestion. Flying cars were once nearly the exclusive domain of tech aphorisms (“You promised us flying cars, but instead we have x.”), but now they are actually being put into gear in the form of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles. Over the last couple of days at the Uber Elevate summit in Los Angeles, the company further laid out its own ambitious plans to develop and commercially deploy air taxis by 2023.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, who has been at the helm for less than one year, admitted he wasn’t initially 100 percent on board for Elevate, he said at the Uber Elevate Summit. It took a couple of sessions and some reviews of the math for him to be sold on it, he said.

“For me the aha moment came when I started understanding that Uber isn’t just about cars,” Khosrowshahi said. “Ultimately, where we want to go is about urban mobility and urban transport, and being a solution for the cities in which we operate.”

atc98092 - 5/10/2018 4:05:02 PM

+3 Boost

With their "successful" autonomous vehicle testing in Arizona, I doubt I would have much of a comfort level in any self-flying Uber.

TomM - 5/10/2018 6:03:37 PM

+2 Boost

Remember - at least in the US - this is going to open up a HUGE hole regarding Fly over rights that will have to be settled in courts unless the states manage to create a law about them. It is one thing to have an airplane at a high altitude going over a house - it would be far greater concern to have Hundreds of flying cars going over a house daily.

WHo will license such vehicles will be another barrier - currently you would need a Pilots license to use such a vehicle in most states.

garysandiego - 5/10/2018 6:46:09 PM

+3 Boost

The insurance industry will have a lot to say about this. A lot!

TheSteve - 5/11/2018 2:51:34 AM

+1 Boost

I'm skeptical. Still waiting for the flying cars we were promised in the 1960s, and nuclear-generated electricity "too cheap to meter" we were promised in the 1950s.

SanJoseDriver - 5/13/2018 9:20:43 PM

+1 Boost

That's exactly whats happening right now. We'll eventually have flying cars, but 2023 is super optimistic. Energy prices will go down as the renewable supply increases. Better 50 years late than never right?

zlives - 5/11/2018 7:47:45 PM

+1 Boost

i can see this as a functional usecase in metro areas for those with the flow. the peons must toil under in their wheeled cages.

carloslassiter - 5/13/2018 8:09:43 AM

+1 Boost

One thing is sure: The best place to discuss a company that "isn't just about cars" is on AutoSpies.