Indian ride-sharing major Ola on Monday forayed into the UK market by launching its services in South Wales, the company said in a statement. “Ola will offer the customers in South Wales, including in Cardiff, Newport and Vale of Glamorgan, the option of hailing private hire vehicles and taxis on one platform,” the city-based online cab aggregator said in a statement here. With a plan to expand across the UK by the end of this year, Ola said it has already obtained the licences to operate in Greater Manchester, in northwest England, where it will begin its operations soon.
Over the past few weeks, the company has received positive feedback from the drivers in South Wales, said Ola UK Managing Director Ben Legg. “We will work with the local authorities in helping the people with their mobility,” Legg said in the statement. As part of launching its services in UK, the company is offering limited discount rides to its customers. Ola’s UK entry comes about seven months after it announced driving into Australia on January 30 to foray into the international market to rival US-based Uber.
The Bengaluru-based firm is currently operating in seven cities across Australia including Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane, Gold Coast and Canberra. Founded in 2011, Ola has been competing against Uber in the ride-hailing market. The seven-year-old Ola claims to have 125 million users in 110 cities.