British company confirms latest steps to challenge Uber with 'truly national' taxi network

Veezu, which was first established in 2013, has quickly become the UK's largest homegrown private hire vehicle business, with more than 25 million rides every year.

The latest partnership will expand the company's presence in the Home Counties in a bid to strengthen local transport networks outside of London.

Go Cars is currently the largest private hire operation in Bedfordshire, growing its fleet to more than 600 vehicles since its launch in 2010.

Veezu's acquisition of Go Cars will challenge the influence of the likes of Uber, Freenow and Bolt, which have garnered a large portion of the market share across the UK.

The Welsh-based company operates across hundreds of towns and cities nationwide, as well as thousands of self-employed driver-partners.

It added that it would look to grow its presence in Cambridgeshire and the East of England as commuting patterns finally return to pre-pandemic levels.

Nathan Bowles, CEO of Veezu, said: "We've always been clear in our ambition to build a truly national network, with a Veezu flag in every region of the UK.

"Our expansion into Luton is a strong example of that in action, as we continue to grow a network of local transport hubs while delivering the dependable, community-focused service passengers rely on every day.

"Go Cars is a highly respected operator with a long-standing reputation for strong local service and deep roots in the Luton community."

Mr Bowles noted that Go Cars would strengthen the company's presence in a "strategically important town".

He highlighted that Luton has a strong commuter demand, in addition to the popular Luton Airport, necessitating reliable transport options.

London Luton Airport is the UK's fifth-busiest airport, with almost 17 million passengers visiting the transport hub in 2024.

Passengers who previously used Go Cars will be able to use the service in the same way as before, although they could benefit from a "streamlined" travel experience through the Veezu app.

People are able to track their vehicles in real-time, use multiple payment options and pre-book journeys in advance.

Labour has hinted that it will look to change taxi and private hire licensing rules to ensure companies do not take advantage of loopholes to operate outside of licensing areas.

This could involve lowering the number of licensing authorities to city or county-wide authorities, rather than many different bodies in one area.