Uber has won over London regulators after years of conflict, securing a two-and-a-half year licence to operate in the capital.

Transport for London has granted the taxi app an extension to its operating licence until the second half of 2024. 

It is the first time in a decade that Uber has secured a licence from TfL without a protracted court battle.

The US tech firm and the regulator have repeatedly sparred over safety and the legality of its business model since it landed in the capital in 2012 and upended London’s taxi market.

TfL had twice denied the company new licences, in 2017 and 2019, and in both cases the company had gone to court to overturn the decision.

Uber has sought to improve relations since. Last year it granted drivers benefits such as holiday pay and minimum wage after a court defeat and won the support of the GMB union. 

It has also recently overhauled its business model to include VAT payments.

The company has pushed for more electric vehicles on its app, and supported London mayor Sadiq Khan’s proposals for road pricing, which would see motorists charged for every journey they make.

However, it has remained unpopular among black cab drivers and has been accused of worsening congestion in the capital.

Jamie Heywood, Uber’s general manager for Northern and Eastern Europe, said: “TfL rightly holds our industry to the highest regulatory and safety standards and we are pleased to have met their high bar.”

TfL said: “Uber has been granted a London private hire vehicle operator’s licence for a period of two-and-a-half years.”

London is one of Uber’s five most important markets globally and by far its biggest in the UK. It has 50,000 drivers in the capital.

TfL denied Uber a licence in 2017 for allegedly failing to report crimes to the police, and in 2019 for not cracking down on drivers using the app under fake identities.

In both cases, Uber continued to operate while it appealed the decision, and secured new licences after making safety changes.