More call taxi operators are setting up shop in the city. The existing players too are expanding their fleets by attaching more cars through the contract mode.
But with a quantum increase in the number of persons booking call taxis, people are exploring options such as booking taxis online and using mobile phone applications. For booking a call taxi over phone, people had to make multiple calls to the customer care centres of call taxis, as the phone would either be busy or the operator may not have a cab in the locality of the caller at that point in time.
A leading call taxi operator said that they get close to 1,500 bookings daily and close to 50 per cent are online bookings. Interestingly, residents of the city book taxis online for a local trip, on a par with tourists. A representative of a leading mobile phone based application that recently launched its service in the city said that 80 per cent of their bookings were through the app and that the rest were bookings through their call centre and website.
Anyone with a smartphone can book cabs through the app with ease. The app also makes it convenient for taxi drivers to get in touch with the customers. The app sends the requirement of a customer to the drivers in the vicinity.
The driver could accept or decline the trip on a first-come-first-serve basis and reach the customer’s place displayed on his smartphone. The driver also reaches the customer’s place without making a call, unlike conventional call taxis, where drivers make multiple calls to reach the customer’s place.
( Reporting by M.K. Ananth )
