Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi calls for changes in German traffic laws

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is calling on Germany to change its traffic laws to become more sustainable, ecological, economical and practical.

The laws should define what the transport sector should look like in the next 50 years, instead of prescribing the past, Khosrowshahi said in an interview with Germany’s Welt am Sonntag.

“In order to be a truly global company, we want to have a permanent presence here," Khosrowshahi said in the interview. “It goes without saying that we adhere to local customs, culture and laws. But I still believe that German laws should change," he said.

Uber in Germany has suffered a number of setbacks. In February, a Munich court ruled that its ride-hailing services violated transport regulations and banned three of its services, while in December a Frankfurt court issued a similar nationwide ban.

Khosrowshahi said Germany still has a lot to do in terms of passenger transport law and criticized a rule obliging rental car companies to return their vehicles to their hubs between two trips. “This rule is pointless in a country that places so much emphasis on environmental protection," he said.