Uber Launches Parking Reservations in 15 US Cities After SpotHero Acquisition

The company said SpotHero gives it access to more than 13,000 garages, lots and valet services in over 400 cities. The first launch covers Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New York City, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, DC.

The initial product is for people who drive their own cars, but Uber also has a longer-term plan for the inventory. It said the parking spaces could serve as staging and waiting spots for vehicles from the autonomous driving companies it partners with, which would cut congestion and deadheading, the miles a vehicle drives with no paying passenger or cargo. Robotaxis need somewhere to wait between trips, so for Uber, which is placing its bets on a network of other companies' driverless cars rather than building its own, a large stock of bookable urban space could become an operating asset.

Chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi set out the commuter case on Uber's third-quarter earnings call earlier this month. "Commute is one of our largest categories," he said, adding that offering commuters a ride to work, a pass to avoid surge pricing, and parking when they want to drive was an example of Uber "building out our inventory of services to the commuter who is a top customer for us."

Uber Parking sits on the app's home screen. Users enter a destination, date and time, then compare options on a map, with filters for self-parking, valet, garages and surface lots. Prices are shown before booking. Users pay with the payment method in their Uber wallet and get into the facility by scanning a QR code or through licence plate recognition. Bookings can be cancelled free of charge until the start time, the company said.

The launch also feeds Uber One, the membership programme Uber uses to keep customers in its app across rides, food and grocery delivery, rentals, hotels and transit. Uber said Uber One had more than 55 million members as of September 30. Members can earn 10% back in credits on eligible parking bookings, which they can then spend on rides and Uber Eats orders.

Uber did not say when it would extend the service beyond the first 15 cities to the rest of SpotHero's network, or when it expects the first autonomous vehicle partners to start using the spaces.