Uber Elevate aims to offer on-demand, electric flying car service within a decade
Flying cars will eventually become cheaper to use than cars, Uber claims.
![Uber Elevate](https://d.ibtimes.co.uk/en/full/1562258/uber-elevate.png?w=736&f=b47ce59d8196200678cfa5d85c754c64)
Uber wants to offer a fleet of on-demand flying cars within the next decade. The electric vehicles will be capable of vertical takeoff and landing, and will travel at up to 150mph hour for 100 miles at a time.
The plans are the brainchild of a new company division called Uber Elevate, and are outlined in a 99-page white paper published by Uber on 27 October, along with a Medium essay written by Jeff Holden, the company's chief product officer.
"Imagine travelling from San Francisco's Marina to work in downtown San Jose – a drive that would normally occupy the better part of two hours – in only 15 minutes," Holden writes, explaining how the average San Francisco resident spent 230 hours commuting to work and back in 2015, adding up to half-a-million lost hours every day.
Drawings by Uber show a vehicle shaped like a glider, but with six helicopter rotas fitted to the wings and fuselage. With a glass canopy covering a cockpit with space for three passengers and their pilot – even Uber isn't trying to see a world with autonomous flying cars, yet. Using multiple rotors cuts down on noise pollution and gives the vehicles a degree of redundancy if a motor were to fail.
On-demand aviation, Holden says, "has the potential to radically improve urban mobility, giving people back time lost in their daily commutes." VTOL [vertical takeoff and landing] aircraft do not need to stick to fixed routes, Uber says, unlike taxis, buses and trains, and they don't rely on huge runways and taxiways like aeroplanes.
![Uber Elevate](https://d.ibtimes.co.uk/en/full/1562263/uber-elevate.jpg?w=736&f=97f05a0b772afc8aad9e06b448bf69ca)
Although it sounds like a helicopter shuttle service for the wealthy, Holden believes the cost can be brought down significantly.
"We believe that in the long-term, VTOLs will be an affordable form of daily transportation for the masses, even less expensive than owning a car."
The UK's High Speed Two (HS2) rail project connecting London and Birmingham is highlighted by Holden as an example where on-demand aviation from Uber Elevate would make more economic sense. HS2 is projected to cost over £200m per mile; Holden says: "Our point is that new technology can create options for transportation infrastructure that are far lower cost."
Uber does not plan to build the vehicles itself, explains a Wired article published on the same day as the essay and white paper. Instead, Uber is on the lookout for manufacturers to partner with on the Elevate project.
![Uber Elevate vehicle](https://d.ibtimes.co.uk/en/full/1562264/uber-elevate-vehicle.jpg?w=736&f=6026316401ee3ff867ee8d0fd67406aa)
"Rather than manufacturer VTOL hardware ourselves, we instead look to collaborate with vehicle developers, regulators, city and national governments, and other community stakeholders, while bringing to the table a very fertile market of excited consumers and a clear vehicle and operations use case," Holden said.
It is one thing to show how excited consumers are to fly in on-demand and affordable private helicopters, however, it is another entirely to gain regulatory approval. Uber has the next decade to work that out.
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