Govt’s ‘Kerala Savaari’ to expand operations

Thiruvananthapuram: The state-owned auto and taxi service app, Kerala Savaari, is preparing to expand operations beyond city limits soon. The app, which was stuck in a bumpy ride, is reported to have finally picked up after New Year and Christmas celebrations in the state capital.
“We currently have around 14,091 users; which is a significant jump from previous statistics, thanks to the festival season. Strengthening marketing strategies while making minor changes to certain rate issues in the app, has made a huge difference. Improvements were made based on assessing customer and driver feedback as well. Based on this result, discussions are in progress regarding the expansion of the app services beyond Thiruvananthapuram city limits to an all-Kerala mode. The confirmation is expected to be received this month itself,” said an official from the app project team.
Hiring new drivers who solely dedicate their services to Kerala Savaari is a major factor which has contributed to the outcome. The driver registration process has been completely made online while police clearance checking (PCC) will transpire simultaneously.
“At present we have around 1,148 registered drivers in the app. There was immense negative propaganda being spread in the driver groups which led to ride cancellations and other problems. Our teams now meet drivers in person, and make them understand the policies of the app. We collect their applications in bulk and move them for PCC checks at the police station,” he said.
While the app seems to flourish, taxi drivers still face obstacles in terms of customer preference. “I believe that recently there is a better preference for autos and hence there are fewer ride requests for taxis which is evident across all online platforms. We have also been getting more direct ride requests from customers without using any apps,” said Vinod Kumar, a Kerala Savaari registered taxi driver.