QCOSTARICA — Savings and speed versus road safety. Without efficient public transportation, these types of options will continue to appear in Costa Rica, according to experts.
On a date yet to be confirmed, Uber Moto will start in Costa Rica with the promise of providing an economical and agile road mobility solution for its users.
This pilot program, starting in Cartago, is said to be an efficient and accessible solution by the company. Similar initiatives have been successful in various countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Mexico, and France, where Uber Moto is currently operating.
This is a pilot plan that will begin in Cartago and that, according to the company, will be “an efficient and accessible solution”, just as it has been in other parts of the world, including cities in Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Mexico and France, among others, where Uber Moto is already operational.
No one can deny the agility of a motorcycle to evade traffic congestion and reach destinations faster, which has made this means of transportation the favorite for thousands of people.
To this, we should add that the cost of fuel is minimal in relation to other transportation options, even cheaper than the public bus service.
“For users looking for an alternative for short or cheaper distances, Uber Moto has proven to be an efficient and accessible solution, which also has more than 40 security tools, including an insurance policy that covers 100% of trips,“ says the company.
However, it is also a fact that motorcyclists are the group most at risk in traffic accidents.
Statistics from the Road Safety Council (Cosevi) – Road Safety Council – indicate that over 40% of individuals who perish at the scene of a crash were riding a motorcycle.
That is why there is concern with the company’s announcement.
On the government side, Mauricio Batalla, head of Ministerio de Obras Publicas y Transportes (MOPT), indicated that at the moment he does not know more details about the announcement, but he asserted that a legal and road safety analysis of the proposal will be carried out.
Meanwhile, road mobility experts, legislators and others have conflicting opinions on the issue.
“It is true that motorcyclists are more prone to fatal accidents, but at the end of the day, it is the user who makes the decision to use this transportation. Risk will always exist when using a vehicle,” said Juan Ricardo Fernández, Director of the Free Consumers Association.
For their part, Roberto Guzmán de Chepecletas and David Gómez, an expert in sustainable mobility, emphasized that this type of option will continue to appear and will attract users.
According to the company, expanding its product portfolio provides easier to access mobility solutions for users and generates economic opportunities for collaborating partners. For users looking for an alternative for short or cheaper distances, Uber Moto has proven to be an efficient and accessible solution.
However, before Uber Moto can start operating it will require permission from the government to do so, permission that ride applications have yet to obtain despite years of operations in Costa Rica.
