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Abu Dhabi’s transport operator Abu Dhabi Mobility has teamed up with Dubai-based Yango Group to provide a public taxi booking service through its smart app.
The operator signed a franchise agreement with the app to improve distribution of public taxis across Abu Dhabi.
The service is likely to operate similar to Dubai’s Careem service, which allows users to choose from Hala taxi services or other Careem cars on the app.
Abdulla Al Marzouqi, director-general of the Integrated Transport Centre, also known as Abu Dhabi Mobility, said offering the service through international apps enhances the overall efficiency of taxi operations.
“This initiative connects public and private taxis, as well as licenced private vehicles, with passengers in the emirate through secure, approved electronic communication platforms and smart apps.
“It also supports the emirate's goals of reducing its carbon footprint by improving the operational efficiency of taxis and transport systems overall,” he said.
The service underwent a trial phase over the past five months with 300 taxis operating within the emirate of Abu Dhabi, with over 8,000 trips completed through the Yango app, now more than 1,500 taxis registered Yango mobile app, Abu Dhabi Mobility said.
The story of Yango
Yango Group set up a global office in Dubai at the end of 2023 and was then referred to as owned by Russian tech group Yandex and reported to be the Russian company’s international brand.
A spokesman for Yango in the UAE said the company is no longer connected to Yandex and declined to comment on who the major shareholder is, or, if a sale had taken place.
Yango ride hailing is headed by CEO Roman Karlash while Islam Abdul Karim serves as general manager of Yango GCC, which is registered in Dubai according to Dubai Chamber of Commerce records.
As well as the UAE, Yango operates in 30 countries across Africa, Europe and Latin America.
(Reporting by Imogen Lillywhite; editing by Seban Scaria)
