Black-and-yellow cabs want to take on Uber, Ola with own mobile app

After resisting cab aggregators like Uber and Ola taxi unions in the city have realised there is a better way to attract customers than holding them to ransom Taxi unions are considering introducing a mobile app through which users can book a blackandyellow cab potentially paving the way for a sea change in the way the cityrsquos public transportation systems functionAlso read HC seeks auto taxi unions replies for going on strikeUnion leaders will have a meeting on July 26 to work out the modalities of their mobile app ldquoWe will soon send a proposal of the app to the state Transport department We are presently working out how it will functionrdquo said A L Quadros taxi union leaderAlso Read Mumbaikars hiring black and yellow cabs may get AC comfortUnion leaders said they will outsource the task of building their app for booking blackandyellow taxis to an agency with expertise in the area File pic for representationTaxi unions have time and again raised the pitch against mobileapp aggregation services like Uber and Ola Cabs accusing them of stealing their customers But it wasnrsquot just the customers who were making the switch ldquoWe realised that nearly 1000 of our drivers and permit holders have flocked to mobile aggregator companiesrdquo Quadros addedPositive moveThere are around 36000 blackandyellow taxis plying in the city and around 4000Cool Cabs Should the unions get the mobile app right and should the government take interest in the idea it will surely benefit Mumbaikars ldquoThe government should promote the idea of having a mobile app in all kinds of taxis and then monitor them properlyIt can work wonders This will increase the chances of getting cabs and refusals too will come downrdquo said Ashok Datar a transport expert ldquoConsidering the number of blackandyellow taxis it would be interesting to see how they manage They arenrsquot tech savvy like the current mobile aggregatorsrdquo said Rishi Aggarwal transport expert and environmentalistSources in Regional Transport Offices RTOs also agreed that this app for the kaalipeelis would offer a spectrum of choices to people and the waiting time for them would come down The union members stated that fares would remain the same but they would train their drivers to use the mobile app members said they would outsource the task of building the app to agencies that have expertise in creating themldquoWe will ensure that sufficient training is given to the drivers to use this system There are several issues that need to be streamlined presentlyrdquo said a member of the Mumbai Taximenrsquos Union The base fare for a blackandyellow taxi nonAC is Rs 22Uber and Ola Cabs have three bands of tariffs depending on the type of car available Shailesh Sawlani GM Uber India said ldquoThe number of our cabs has surely increased This is evident as the expected time of arrival has drastically gone down to 57 minutes and we intend to reduce time of arrival furtherrdquoRise of the appThe popularity of the mobile aggregators can be attributed to the ease of usage both for the user and the driver As per the Transport department rules any vehicle with a tourist vehicle permit can ply for a mobile aggregator Data shows that the number of tourist taxis in the city has risen considerablyAs per the registrations seen in the three RTOs Andheri Tardeo Wadala 18400 tourist taxis were registered in the financial year 201415 as compared to 13752 in the year 201314 RTO sources said that since these mobile aggregators are presently under the scope of a tourist taxi many vehicles with tourist permits have tied up with the aggregators and drivers operate as per their convenienceAlso read Ubers pricing on Taxi Strike Day takes commuters for a shock rideThe mobile app for the blackandyellow cabs still needs to clear several policy hurdles The state Transport department is working on the draft Maharashtra Transport Act 2015 to bring cab aggregators under the purview of the Transport department there are currently no provisions in the Centrersquos Motor Vehicles Act for these services If the Act does materialise Maharashtra will be the first state in the country to have a Transport Act of its own