With Monsoon Season Here Taxi Hailing Apps Make Merry

By Samachar Vishesh News

Chandigarh 01^st July:- The monsoon months of June, July and August spell doom for commuters who use taxi-hailing apps to reach their destinations. The sky high cab fares on rainy days or on days when there is unending traffic, burns a deep hole in a consumer’s pocket. Their travel budget for whole month takes a hit, leaving them frustrated, dejected and burdened than usual.

Vistar Gupta, who uses one such app to get to work said that he usually pay INR 300 to commute from Zirakhpur to his office in Mohali. During the rainy season, he has even paid INR 600 which is very frustrating and has messed up his entire monthly budget. The only other alternative is public transport buses which have a set route and take forever to reach your destination.

Ride-hailing in Chandigarh has become difficult for commuters. It lacks transparency and freedom to choose at various levels. International markets have witnessed a revolution with apps like inDriver wherein consumer has the power of choice on fare, driver rating, estimated time of arrival, vehicle model etc so that he/she not only feels safe but also feels empowered. An app like this can be a solution for cab facilities in the tricity, providing a service that aids drivers and commuters to operate in a perfect analogy.  

On a wintery day during the New Year holidays of 2012, the temperature in Yakutsk, Siberia, an eastern region of Russia, dropped below -45C and the local taxi drivers doubled the cost of their rides. In order to overcome this issue, the residents of Yakutsk created a group by the name of “Independent Drivers” on social media. Group members would list the price they were willing to pay, and drivers accepted their orders. In just six months, more than 60,000 people had joined the group. Not long after, the mobile app inDriver was created to replace the group, allowing passengers to independently set the most optimal terms for their rides.

Besides wreaking havoc on pocket of the common man, the currently operating apps charge high percentage of commission from their drivers which is said to be around 15-20%. The entire setup is such that neither the consumer nor the drivers are benefitted but just the companies.

We require an alternate which resolves this concern for both the commuters as well the cabbies. The commuters in tri-city not only need better public transport but taxi services which are more organized and consumer-friendly.