Uber Arriving Soon

Councillors in Tunbridge Wells have given approval for Uber drivers to work in the Borough.

But established taxi drivers are said to be “fuming” after the news that Uber now had a one-year licence came out on social media.

A spokesman for the juggernaut private car hire app confirmed its licence has been granted and it soon plans to sign up drivers in the borough – covering Tunbridge Wells, Paddock Wood, Southborough and surrounding villages.

Clayton Berry (pictured below), driver and proprietor of taxi firm Cleggy’s Taxi, claimed local drivers were miffed as the announcement was made by a councillor on social media before TWBC’s senior licensing officer got in touch to tell cabbies officially.

“It got leaked on social media before the council had told us and now there’s an official complaint,” he said.

“Loads of cabbies are absolutely fuming.

“Something like this is major – it’s got to go through the proper channels.”

The app has faced opposition from established taxi, private hire and Hackney Carriage firms throughout the country in the past – claiming lower prices are undercutting licensed taxis and leading to unfair competition.

In 2014, black cab drivers demonstrated in their vehicles throughout London in opposition to the introduction of Uber.

In December, TWBC increased the standard fares that taxis were allowed to charge, making it one of the most expensive places in Kent to get a cab.

Mr Berry continued: “Of course there are concerns – you’ll see drivers leaving their firms.”

He suggested the competition from Uber in places like Tunbridge Wells would slowly drive smaller taxi and private hire firms out of business.

“Uber cancels half the time if you’re in the countryside,” he argued.

“You have goliaths and the small ones and the goliaths will win at the end of the day.

“Uber sometimes even goes way over the Hackney [standard] rate – they have price surges.

“Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t work out cheaper – they’re very clever with how they do their marketing.

“I feel sorry for their drivers, say you give them a £10 fare, the driver probably only gets about £4 of that, Uber takes the rest.”

Uber did not confirm when exactly it will start offering services in Tunbridge Wells

However, the one-year licence period is common when Uber first starts working with a licensing authority.

Last month, the company received a five-year renewal of its licence to operate in York by the council there, after the expiry of its initial one-year period.

A spokesperson for TWBC said: “‘Uber applied for a licence in the same way as any other operator.

“They went through the full licensing application process, which includes an assessment against the council’s policies, and were duly awarded their licence on 17 July 2025.”

The council was also approached about the way the decision had been announced.