Arrival has revealed its first finished prototype of the Arrival Car, designed specifically for the ride-hailing industry to give the best possible experience for both drivers and passengers and bring clean air to urban environments where most ride-hailing mileage occurs, the company says. To achieve this, Arrival has created a vehicle that the company says has exceptional visibility and comfort – with legroom twice as large as that of an average car of the same length. The Arrival Car prioritizes cost, uptime, driver comfort, safety, and convenience, given an average ride-hail vehicle will drive 45-50,000 km a year (approx. 28,000-31,000 miles) on average.
Arrival has been able to develop the car alongside ride-hailing drivers from Uber in just over six months. This timeframe and partnership to create a purpose-built vehicle are made possible because of Arrival’s vertical integration utilizing technologies that are shared across Arrival’s entire portfolio of vehicles that also includes the van and the bus, the company says.
Arrival will now commence testing the car and will incorporate the feedback into the next design phase, continuing to evolve the product to create the most efficient, safe and desirable vehicle tailored specifically to this market.
Arrival announced its partnership with Uber to develop an affordable, purpose-built EV for ride-hailing drivers earlier this year. The Arrival Car is addressing the global need to shift ride-hailing and car-sharing services, with over an estimated 30 million drivers across the ride-hailing sector, over to electric to reduce emissions and improve air quality in cities.