Uber to acquire Routematch for public transport applications

Part of the wider drive by the ride-hail service into public transportation

Uber to acquire Routematch for public transport applications

Uber on 16th July 2020 announced it will acquire Routematch, a company based in Atlanta that designs public transport agencies' software. The news comes amid a more extensive drive into public transportation for the ride-hail company.

Uber has not disclosed the terms of the contract. Routematch, founded in 2000, provides data processing, dispatch, trip scheduling, and ticketing applications to public transit agencies. Uber said the acquisition would help strengthen its efforts to integrate more public transportation services, such as route planning and ticket purchases, into its app.

The news comes on the heels of Uber's announcement that it will start selling the software that empowers its ride-hailing company to transit agencies, with California's Marin County transportation agency as its first customer. But the deal started small and driven logistics for only four wheelchair-accessible vans. The purchase of Routematch, which has agreements with over 500 public transit agencies, is targeted towards seeking new users and new revenue streams for Uber's software-as-a-service platform.

Routematch has had some success in helping to boost bus service for small rural communities. The company teamed up with the town of Bad Axe, Michigan, last year to offer on-demand, Uber-like free bus service to hundreds of Puerto Ricans displaced by Hurricane Maria who had moved to the city for jobs. Routematch also assists officials in Cecil County, Maryland, developing free, on-demand bus service to travel to and from recovery meetings for people with opioid addictions.

Over the years, Uber has been accused of competing directly with and poaching subway, train, and bus passengers. Declining bus and subway riding have been tied to the growth of app-based ride-hailing in hundreds of cities across the United States. Recently, Uber has added transit directions and ticketing to its app in some cities, hoping it can blunt the criticism by giving transit fair footing in its app.

Uber revealed that it would start selling train and bus tickets through its Denver, Colorado, app for passengers last year. The business has since incorporated schedules and directions for public transit into its software for more than a dozen other cities. Less than a year later, Uber reports that Uber Transit has been attempted by over 2 million users.

Uber has recently revealed plans for USD 2.65 billion to buy Postmates supermarket and food delivery service. While the pandemic continues to pummel its core transportation market, it is struggling to expand its revenue generation options. Uber said his ride-hailing business was down about 80 percent at the height of the pandemic in April. In reaction to the epidemic, the company eliminated more than 25 percent of its workforce. And with the number of COVID cases in many parts of the US spiking, its losses are likely to worsen.