It appears private cab operators in different cities in India are in no mood to throw in the towel against ride-hailing giants Ola and Uber.
After HD Kumaraswamy-backed Namma TYGR in Bengaluru, a group of 3,000 cab drivers in Chennai have come together to launch their own app for the cab service.
The online cab service will be offered by Ottunar Thozhargal Sangam (OTS), an organisation associated with the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, and is expected to begin this March, a Times of India report said.
OTS is planning to introduce the online cab service with nearly 1,800 drivers plying in the city while the rest will operate in the suburbs.
Member of new entity also highlighted the benefits for users and added that fares will be calculated only based on the total distance travelled which will be flashed on the mobile phone screen after the ride comes to an end.
Besides, there will be no surge pricing waiting charges or additional hidden charges if a passenger changes the destination point in OTS taxis.
Unlike current charges of 20 per cent- 21 per cent of the total earnings levied as commissions by Ola and Uber, drivers will be charged only 7 per cent along with 5 per cent GST towards this head in OTS taxis.
The move will surely give a jolt to cab-hailing behemoths in the state. OTS will create an alternative for travellers, who are annoyed with both the companies for dictating price monopoly in the market. Besides, drivers will also get an opportunity to ride taxis where they are charged fewer commissions on their total earnings.
In November last year, JD(S) State President HD Kumaraswamy-backed Namma TYGR launched its app-based cab service with a fleet of 10,000 cabs in Bengaluru. Namma TYGR was launched in collaboration with Kolkata-based startup TYGR.
So far, TYGR app has presence in Mumbai, Kolkata, Ranchi, and Indore. It plans to launch in Cuttack and Bhubaneshwar in the next few months.
