LUCKNOW: Taking a cab home from work late in the evening wasn’t as smooth as Sanjana Mehdiratta had imagined it would be. After five frustrating attempts to book an Uber, the 24-year-old advertising professional learnt that app-based commuting services were anything but dependable.
College student Honey Verma’s Ola bike taxi experience was intimidating. The 18-year-old was abandoned in the middle of nowhere for mildly protesting against rash driving. And that after the bike taxi nearly ploughed into a shop wall.
These are not stray incidents. In fact, they are fairly routine going by concerns raised by several app cab users on social media platforms. From being quizzed by drivers about destination and mode of payment to watching the cab circle on the map and incurring penalty as rogue drivers take eternity to arrive — every second user has a complaint to voice. In 2018, the New Delhi government had proposed a policy to impose a fine of Rs 25,000 on taxi aggregators for violation of trust.. In the absence of a monitoring mechanism, app cab riders in UP face harassment on a daily basis.
“I was booking a cab home to Krishnanagar from Hazratganj around 11pm. The driver called to know my drop location and said he was coming, but five minutes later he cancelled the trip. Five more drivers did the same. I got sixth time lucky,” Sanjana told TOI. She said most drivers, planning to call it a day, look for riders who live closer to their homes.
Honey who goes to college on Faizabad Road and depends on bike taxis said most drivers had their temper on a short fuse.
Anushree Gupta, an Ola regular, said the taxi aggregator recently charged her for a trip she never took. “I tried booking a ride thrice, wasted an hour doing so and was made to pay even though my trips were cancelled. To top it all, the customer service was pathetic,” the Aashiana resident said, adding that often drivers ditched riders once they realised the payment mode was online.
Uber acknowledged receiving an email from TOI, but didn’t answer the queries made. Contacted over WhatsApp, an official on November 22 said “someone from the team will shortly get in touch”, which didn’t happen. Answering a phone call, an official said their response on the issues was awaiting a nod from the brass.
Similar mails, messages and calls to Ola did not evoke any official response.
College student Honey Verma’s Ola bike taxi experience was intimidating. The 18-year-old was abandoned in the middle of nowhere for mildly protesting against rash driving. And that after the bike taxi nearly ploughed into a shop wall.
These are not stray incidents. In fact, they are fairly routine going by concerns raised by several app cab users on social media platforms. From being quizzed by drivers about destination and mode of payment to watching the cab circle on the map and incurring penalty as rogue drivers take eternity to arrive — every second user has a complaint to voice. In 2018, the New Delhi government had proposed a policy to impose a fine of Rs 25,000 on taxi aggregators for violation of trust.. In the absence of a monitoring mechanism, app cab riders in UP face harassment on a daily basis.
“I was booking a cab home to Krishnanagar from Hazratganj around 11pm. The driver called to know my drop location and said he was coming, but five minutes later he cancelled the trip. Five more drivers did the same. I got sixth time lucky,” Sanjana told TOI. She said most drivers, planning to call it a day, look for riders who live closer to their homes.
Honey who goes to college on Faizabad Road and depends on bike taxis said most drivers had their temper on a short fuse.
Anushree Gupta, an Ola regular, said the taxi aggregator recently charged her for a trip she never took. “I tried booking a ride thrice, wasted an hour doing so and was made to pay even though my trips were cancelled. To top it all, the customer service was pathetic,” the Aashiana resident said, adding that often drivers ditched riders once they realised the payment mode was online.
Uber acknowledged receiving an email from TOI, but didn’t answer the queries made. Contacted over WhatsApp, an official on November 22 said “someone from the team will shortly get in touch”, which didn’t happen. Answering a phone call, an official said their response on the issues was awaiting a nod from the brass.
Similar mails, messages and calls to Ola did not evoke any official response.
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