2024.09.04

PARK24 CO., LTD. hereby announces that it will launch, on September 4, a pilot ride-hailing service in collaboration with Uber Japan Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Uber"). We will construct a ride-hailing service scheme using the vehicles of the Times CAR car sharing service operated by the PARK24 GROUP. The pilot program will begin operating with the cooperation of Royal Limousine Co., Ltd., a corporate taxi service operator that is a partner of Uber.

It will be Japan's first ride-hailing service to be operated with car sharing vehicles.

In Japan, in addition to the private paid passenger transport system in areas with transport vacancies, the Government of Japan has been developing laws and regulations against the backdrop of socio-economic conditions such as an increasingly serious shortage of taxi drivers in urban areas and a shortage of transport facilities due to surge of inbound tourist demand. In April 2024, ride-hailing services as a private vehicle business became permitted in limited conditions. The national government determines the areas where such services may be operated in consideration of size of the taxi shortage. At present, general drivers provide services transporting passengers for a fee, during time periods when taxi services become shortage, in 12 areas across the country under the management of corporate taxi service operators.

However, a sufficient number of ride-hailing drivers have not been secured due to reasons such as some drivers not owning their cars, some drivers that own cars can only use their cars in limited time slots and some drivers' cars do not conform to requirements.

This pilot program will verify various aspects of the scheme in which general drivers use Times CAR vehicles to provide ride-hailing services operated by a corporate taxi service operator using Uber's ride-hailing app, identify problems with operations and study how to resolve these issues.

If the scheme that will be operated on a trial basis is commercialized, it will open the way for ride-hailing services with general drivers driving non-private motor vehicles. We believe this will help solve the shortage of ride-hailing drivers and increase mobility convenience.

The PARK24 GROUP will accumulate expertise and other information regarding the operation of the service with a view towards commercialization, believing that the increase in the situations where Times CAR vehicles are used will lead to the increased use of these vehicles.

As corporate taxi service operator, Royal Limousine Co., Ltd., which is a partner of Uber, will participate in the pilot program which will be implemented in the 23 wards of Tokyo, Musashino City and Mitaka City, where both a large number of users and a large number of drivers are expected.

The PARK24 GROUP's philosophy states, "We create new forms of comfort and convenience by responding to the needs of today and anticipating the needs of tomorrow." We operate Times PARKING by-the-hour parking services, Times CAR car-sharing services, and Times CAR RENTAL car rental services for the realization of a society where anyone can move comfortability using mobility services. In addition, we have been working to improve the convenience of mobility in collaboration with other companies and services.

We will continue to accelerate initiatives for bringing a whole new level of comfort and convenience to the environment around mobility.