Uber drivers are going to have access to 50,000 Tesla vehicles for rent through Hertz

Uber announced a deal with Hertz for its drivers to have access to 50,000 Tesla vehicles through the rental company.

Earlier this week, we reported on Hertz announcing that it ordered 100,000 Model 3 vehicles from Tesla. Now we learn that there’s more to the deal.

Hertz has already been working with Uber to offer its drivers access to rental vehicles – since many don’t own the cars they use on the ride-hailing platform.

Now, in a blog post called ‘Your Tesla is arriving now’, Uber announced that Hertz is going to make 50,000 Tesla vehicles available for rent to its drivers:

“Today, it goes electric: Hertz will make up to 50,000 fully electric Teslas available for drivers to rent by 2023, exclusively for drivers using the Uber network in the US. This is the largest expansion of electric vehicles (EVs) on a mobility platform in North America and one of the largest globally, marking another step towards Uber’s zero-emissions goal.”

It sounds like Hertz plans to make half of its recently ordered Tesla fleet available to Uber drivers through this new partnership.

The program starts on November 1 in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, and Washington, DC, with a nationwide expansion in the following weeks.

Uber also recently announced a deal with Wallbox to start installing charging stations in order to support an electric vehicle fleet.

Uber drivers will pay $334 a week to rent the Model 3, insurance and maintenance included. Uber says that it will eventually fall to $299 a week, once the program expands.

Electrek’s Take

This is an interesting development.

There are over 1 million Uber drivers in the US and many of them rent their vehicles. It will be interesting to see how many will take this offer, but I bet it will be many.

Uber has had several programs before to help drivers access electric vehicles to do their job, but this is by far the biggest, and it’s not surprising that it’s with Tesla vehicles since they are arguably best suited for the job.

Interestingly, Tesla planned to launch its own competing ride-hailing service, Tesla Network, which could make things even more interesting if it ever launches.