Taxi travel in city becomes easier
Former IIT-B students tie up with private cab operators, launch point-to-point local commute service at a premium price.
Is the prospect of hailing a cab and facing a harassing commute to work, after getting into multiple fights with drivers refusing to ply vehicles to your destination, becoming the norm? There could be a simple, albeit pricey, solution around the corner.
After tying up with private taxi operators, Olacabs, a car rental company in the city will now offer commuters a point-to-point local travel service. Unlike other cab services, this allows you to summon a cab within minutes, even to a street corners. The initiative will ensure that commuters have a stress-free journey within the city.
The pilot project was launched at Nariman Point last week and is expected to cover the rest of Mumbai by next month. “We do not own any of the vehicles. So we have tied up with private taxi operators who have spare vehicles,” says Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder of Olacabs who started this service along with fellow IITian Ankit Bhati.
All a passenger has to do is go to the website —
— or download their mobile application and fill in some details including the pick-up point. A cab that is closest to your location will be informed about the request, following which the passenger will be given the details of the driver and cab. Information on the approximate time it will take to get to your location will also be mentioned. “All our cabs have GPS. So passengers can track where their car is and how long it will take to reach them,” says Aggarwal.
However, this service comes at a price. Passengers will need to pay Rs 100 for the first four kms and Rs 15 for each km after. There will also be a running time charge of Rs 1 per minute. However, customers will not be made to pay anything extra for waiting. “These costs are similar to other private operators in the city and the point is to make travel easier,” says Aggarwal.
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