Uber’s Push to Electrify London Turns Former Foes Into Partners

In 2019, London officials revoked Uber Technologies Inc.’s permit to operate in the city for the second time in just over two years, with Mayor Sadiq Khan citing a “pattern of failure” regarding background checks and drivers’ identity verification. Uber Chief Executive Officer Dara Khosrowshahi fired back on Twitter, calling the decision “just wrong” and pledging to do whatever it took to regain the license.

The company won an appeal a year later, and these days, Khosrowshahi is quick to praise “Mayor Khan’s vision” and stress the strong relationship Uber has with the city. Khosrowshahi met with Khan in November, and in March the city granted Uber a new two-and-a-half-year license to compete with the black cabs that ply the streets of the British capital.