Uber Japan to launch limited ride-sharing services in April

Uber Japan said Friday that it will launch ride-sharing services in April.

Uber Japan’s new services will only be available in areas and during times of the day deemed to face a shortage of taxis. The parameters will be decided by the central government in the near future. The company aims to expand such services across Japan.

In December last year, the Japanese government decided to partially lift a ban on ride-sharing services on condition that taxi companies manage the services.

Taking this into account, Uber Japan started discussions with partner taxi companies aiming to introduce ride-sharing services. Details of the services will be decided at a later date.

Meanwhile, Go, which operates taxi dispatching services, on Friday began accepting on a preliminary basis applications from drivers who are not professional taxi drivers to be involved in ride-sharing services. The company will employ such people as part-time drivers in Tokyo’s 23 wards and the cities of Yokohama, Kawasaki and Kyoto.

Didi Mobility Japan, a joint venture set up by SoftBank Corp. and the Chinese ride-hailing giant, announced on the same day that it has started to develop an app for ride-sharing services.