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Uber founder Travis Kalanick, while speaking at a conference said Uber would be making a strong push in 2017 that would include expansion in Europe.
The co-founder, who is American, said he wanted to establish a new partnership with cities in the European Union. He added that he looked forward to spending more time this year in Europe.
Kalanick said he also hoped to take more than 400,000 cars off roads across Europe in 2017 while creating at the same time at least 50,000 new jobs.
He said Uber worked with 22 jurisdictions during 2014 to pass the legal frameworks for its ride sharing mostly within the U.S.
Referring to regulatory problems Uber has faced in Europe, Kalanick said that regulators and competitors were creating as well as sticking to new regulations to protect the taxi industry.
He said the new rules are in existence because the taxi industry it attempting to protect itself.
Kalanick said the Uber businesses in Sweden and the Netherlands were expanding but that incumbents in Spain, Germany and France had filed legal action against the ride-sharing company to stifle the competition.
The co-founder of the company said competition authorities across Europe had spoken out against the anti-competitive regulations and singled out authorities in transportation in Brussels, Helsinki and the Netherlands, which he said had been drafting progressive regulations.
Uber said Kalanick had continued its growth globally and was reaching its inflection point where the company’s size could make an impact in cities.
The CEO spoke of a number of advantages the company could bring to European cities including extending capabilities and range of services of public mass transit.
He added that 15% of all the rides Uber has in Paris are over a kilometer from where services of the metro stops. He said the company is extending the ability of the cities mass transit to serve people.
Kalanick is offering mayors of cities 10,000 new jobs over a period of four years, less traffic congestion and better efficiency in cities that are partnered on a framework of regulations.
