Uber Movement – finding smarter ways to move forward

Every hour of every day, people use Uber to get around the more than 450 cities we serve. From Johannesburg to Sydney, we’ve been working hard to get to know these cities, with the goal of making them cleaner, more efficient and less crowded.

Along the way, we’ve found that local leaders, urban planners, and civic communities are all working to crack their city’s commute and figure out how best to invest in new infrastructure. That’s why we’re introducing Movement: a website that uses Uber’s data to help urban planners make informed decisions about our cities.

Uber trips occur all over cities, so by analysing a lot of trips over time, we can reliably estimate how long it takes to get from one area to another. Since Uber is available 24/7, we can compare travel conditions across different times of day, days of the week, or months of the year—and how travel times are impacted by big events, road closures or other things happening in a city.

This is only the first step. City planners face a myriad of challenges, and we hope to help tackle more of them over time. We’re excited to partner with Johannesburg city officials, urban planners and research organisations to continue building features that today’s transportation planners need.

Over the past four years, we’ve learned a lot about the future of urban mobility in Africa — and what it means for cities and the people who live in them. We’ve seen how more access to transportation and the use of private cars for the public good can change both where and how we live for the better. We hope Uber Movement can play a role in helping our cities grow in a way that works for everyone.

If you’re interested in working with us on a partnership or research opportunity using Movement data, please contact research@uber.com.