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With <keyword id="1042120" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Uber">Uber</keyword> and <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword> emerging as the leaders of the growing <keyword id="3140795" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="online-taxi-services">online taxi services</keyword> space in India, it seems <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Meru-Cabs-is-actually-better-off-after-Ola-and-Uber-began/articleshow/48759979.cms">Meru</a> who pioneered the industry is losing at its own game. From tying up with global companies, innovating new features on their apps to complying aggressively with government regulations, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Ola-changes-tact-to-beat-Uber-at-its-game-Plans-to-invest-Rs-5000-crore-/articleshow/48970068.cms">Ola</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Uber-Believed-To-Be-Keen-On-Acquiring-Meru-Cabs/articleshow/46108451.cms">Uber</a> are invading the industry with cheaper travel alternatives as their main motto.
 

	In all this aggression, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Meru-becomes-the-first-Indian-radio-taxi-player-to-enter-strategic-international-alliance/articleshow/49470450.cms">Meru seems to have lost out at the main idea of conception</a>. Other than going slow on innovation, its rates are much higher too. But hold it right there! The fixed rates are the best strategy that the company is betting on right now and they believe this is what is going to make them grow at a much faster rate than the others. How?
 Well, hear it from one of the most defined and aggressive CEOs of the space, <keyword id="1448760" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Siddhartha-Pahwa">Siddhartha Pahwa</keyword>, CEO of <keyword id="108722" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Meru-Cabs">Meru Cabs</keyword>. 
	
		Can you give an overview of the present online taxi services space in India?
	 
	
		We analysed this industry 2007 and believed that the potential is pretty huge. We knew that a good quality transportation services is what the consumers require. The penetration of personal cars in India is very low, as low as about 5-6 %. While globally 40-50 % of the people own the personal cars. The reason is in India the cost of owning a car is significantly higher in India in terms of purchase parity. Therefore we provided taxis as a good travel solution to people. 
	 
	
		Even after eight years, the industry is growing at a pace of roughly 25 per cent. We see an organised growth at 50 percent in the next 3-5 years.
	 
	
		What are your future plans?
	 
	
		Carpooling would become very big in India. By carpooling we mean that pooling of taxi rides as well as people pooling their personal vehicles. This is the future in the next 3-5 years.
	 
	
		There are many start-ups coming up who provide carpooling services. How is that affecting your business?
	 
	
		At this point of time the industry is not looking for a loss or gain. The category is still developing and it is known to develop by people coming from unorganised sector to organised sector. Newer players coming into the market will only open up the market in a larger scale. Like any other industry, we would go through a mushrooming phase and there would be a consolidation phase of 3-5 years.
	 
	
		You rates are much higher than Ola and Uber. How do you plan to compete with them?
	 People are ready to pray the price for our product. That’s why we are seeing 35 per cent stagger in our business. We give a robust, advanced product to our consumer where a consumer can book for a taxi even 10 days in advance at fixed rates. Secondly, we have the product at the airport too. Third is our fixed pricing. So people do not see us overcharging during peak demand, like the <keyword id="3140794" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="search-pricing">search pricing</keyword> done by others. 
	
		But don’t you think if you bring down the price, there would be more growth of your company?
	 
	
		If the quality is not there, people will not use it after a point of time. 
	 
	
		What is the future of the industry?
	 
	
		Partners would develop and they would start partnerships with technological companies. We would be able to provide good technology partnerships to these players.
	 
	
		How are the current government regulations affecting the industry and what should be done?
	 
	
		Both the central and the state government believe that it is an important industry and that is why the laws have been amended at such a fast pace. There are three things that the government is very clear about and they believe these will help the industry to grow in a better and balanced manner.
	 
	
		1. They say that more individuals and micro-entrepreneurs should partner in the industry to develop this category and therefore they have opened up the industry by saying that anybody who has a car can get a taxi license and join any of the operators.
	 
	
		2. We want good safety to be deployed by the aggregator or the operator. Who is the driver, driving patterns of the driver etc must be checked by the company. That makes the company responsible for any mishaps or misconduct by the driver.
	 
	
		3. The third thing they are saying is that they want to move away from a fixed fare structure. However we will not allow a free market economy completely because we have seen in the past that consumers have been forced to pay 5x, even 10x the fares. We will give a price range and within that the dynamics of the industry has to be governed. 
	 
	
		How do you ensure the safety of the consumers?
	 
	
		We have three robust processes at place. The drivers go through four days of training, teaching them how to deal with passengers, people with special needs. There is a psychologist sitting in the panel. The customer can register a number of a known person on our app and we share details of the trip with him/her every time the customer takes a ride. There is also a ‘In case of emergency’ button in the app. If you touch the button and within 10 seconds an alarm goes in our call centres whereby we get in touch with the cab driver and passenger. The alarm also goes in the emergency number that is saved by the passenger.
	 
	
		What are your IPO plans?
	 
	
		At this point of time IPO might not be the right financial solution for the company because once you get listed the amount of pressure that is on you to disclose your company’s numbers and profitability is huge. The industry does not need this right now. This industry will need at least $1.5-$2 bn more investment to change the behaviour of the consumer markedly.
	 
	
		What is your estimated revenue growth?
	 
	
		We expect $110 m revenue at the end of this financial year.
	 

(Image credits: Indiatimes)

EXCLUSIVE: Meru CEO isn’t afraid of competition from Uber and Ola. He thinks there is enough place to co-exist

Before the flock of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/You-may-soon-be-hopping-on-to-an-Ola-bus/articleshow/48155360.cms">Olas</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Uber-users-can-pay-by-cash-in-four-more-Indian-cities-now/articleshow/48170637.cms">Ubers</a> made way into our phone apps and became a preferred alternative from the daily hassles of forcing an auto-driver to go by the meter or desperately trying to hail a taxi on a rainy day, cab service provider <keyword id="205081" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Meru">Meru</keyword> used to rule the market. 
 
Being the only one with such a service, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/This-is-how-Meru-Cabs-plans-to-give-Ola-and-Uber-a-run-for-their-money/articleshow/46622043.cms">Meru</a> not only commanded a loyal base of customers who were bereft of choices, but it also provided an experience better than the regular <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/How-Startups-Like-Meru-Uber-Olacabs-TaxiForSure-Have-Transformed-Lives-Of-Taxi-Drivers/articleshow/39865931.cms">taxis</a>, that too at a similar price. 
 Then the market expanded and in came new players like <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword> and <keyword id="1042120" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Uber">Uber</keyword>, which aggressively promoted themselves with cheaper pricing, abundant selection in types of cabs and interesting tie-ups ensuring they made headlines day in and out. 
 
In between, Meru, the oldest cab service provider somewhat lost its footing. However, not one to lag behind, Meru today announced the launch of its new ride sharing service, 'CarPool' for its customers across India, in keeping with the added services provided by competitors Uber and Ola in the past. 
 
Currently available in Android, the service is integrated in the Meru Cabs mobile app and essentially allows <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Time-For-Indians-To-Embrace-Car-Pooling-Wholeheartedly-As-Tripda-Bags-11-million-Investment/articleshow/46065069.cms">ride-sharing</a> for people going in the same direction. 
 “We’re targeting everyone who owns a personal vehicle across the country with this service. Our research showed that atleast 50 percent of the vehicle owners would be interested in offering a ride to people, provided the safety aspect is taken care of. And, that’s where we came in,” explained <keyword id="1448760" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Siddhartha-Pahwa">Siddhartha Pahwa</keyword>, CEO of Meru Cabs. 
 
He said that anyone over the age of 18 years can register as a ride-owner by furnishing their email-address, driver’s license, phone number and Facebook profile. Additionally, a PAN card/Aadhar card verification of both the ride-owners and a ride-sharer are mandatory for the completion of the registration process. A registration will be confirmed only after the elementary verification conducted by the Meru app team is over. 
 
“Thus, we will have the details of both the ride-owner and the sharer. Our team will thus monitor all rides taking places 24x7 and raise an alarm incase something goes haywire,” added Pahwa. 
 
On being asked whether there would still be hesitation on the part of a customer to share a ride with a stranger at a time when unfortunate incidents are on the rise, he confidently explained that the reputation and association of Meru, which is a trusted brand player in the market should seal the deal. 
 
Dismissing fears of the new carpool service dividing the customer base of Meru, Pahwa said the need of the hour is to provide customers with more options in orderto make their travel effortless and cheaper. Customer satisafaction comes firsta nd foremost, he elaborates. 
 
The pricing of the ride offered is however totally upto the ride-owner. “Meru is just validating this service. It’s the ride-owner who decides if he wants to charge Rs 100 for a seat or Rs 200. There is no minimum or maximum charge levied from our side,” he stated. 
 
Asserting that Meru has already left Uber and Ola behind in terms of competition, Pahwa says that the Indian customer is more value-conscious than price conscious, which is the reason why Meru has been experiencing a 40 percent growth with a faithful set of customers despite being priced on the steeper side. 
 
“If Indian customers were price-driven and chose Uber and Ola over Meru cabs, I would’ve closed down by now,” he gleefully admits. 
 Signing off, Pahwa lets us in on a secret, “The $15 billion personal transporation industry is our target. <keyword id="3031501" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Carpool-by-Meru">Carpool by Meru</keyword> is going to assume a larger part in our business in the next three to four years.” 
 
Image credit: Indiatimes

Meru Cabs is actually better-off after Ola and Uber began!

With the increasing competition between the cab service providers in the country, it has become extremely important for them to continue raising cash to stay ahead of their rivals. And perhaps this is what <keyword id="205081" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Meru">Meru</keyword> Cabs realised. The Mumbai-headquartered taxi service is in advanced talks with hedge funds <keyword id="2200131" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Valiant-Capital-Partners">Valiant Capital Partners</keyword> and <keyword id="4675626" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Falcon-Edge-Capital">Falcon Edge Capital</keyword> to raise Rs 627 crore ($100 million), as The Economic Times report. 
 The amount raised by Meru will help the India's oldest radio taxi operator to maintain a stronghold in the fight with it’s competitors like Tiger Global-backed <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword> and San Francisco-based <keyword id="1042120" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uber">Uber</keyword>. 
 
Earlier this week, Meru raised $50 million (Rs 300 crore) from existing investor India Value Fund Advisors (IVFA) in order to finance its expansion plan to operate in 40 cities. 
 
Meru CEO Siddhartha Pahwa said, "We are talking to a new set of investors including Hong Kong and US-based hedge funds to raise $100 million at a valuation of $350 million," said Meru CEO Siddhartha Pahwa. 
 
Besides, Meru, which began operations in 2007, is also associating with regional radio taxi operators on a revenue-share basis to expand its fleet at a faster pace. Currently, it has a fleet of more than 50,000 taxis. 
(Image: Meru)

​This is how Meru Cabs plans to give Ola and Uber a run for their money

Criticising the surge pricing policy of rivals Uber and Ola, Mumbai-based Taxi operator <keyword id="108722" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Meru-Cabs">Meru Cabs</keyword> has slashed its fares by 25% in Delhi. It also said that Uber and Ola should not put surge pricing especially during the experimental phase of odd and even scheme. 
 
Meru’s new rates will come into effect from Friday and would run till the mid of May, and which can be extended if response is good. In due course, the offer will be rolled out to other cities as well. 
 
"We have seen a 35% increase in bookings during the current odd-even phase. We want to make the service more attractive to more users and hence have brought down rates," Siddhartha Pahwa, CEO, Meru Cabs said. "We do not see any losses due to this as the lower rates are compensated by a surge in bookings." 
 
As opposed to the rate of Rs 23, the Meru ride will now cost Rs 17.25 per km, while for small cabs, it’s been brought down to Rs 11.25 per km from Rs 15 per km. 
 
Meru Cabs has a fleet of 20,000 cars and operates in 21 cities, making it the largest pan India operator. 
 
<a href="http://www.afaqs.com/news/news_story_grfx/2010/27494_2_big.jpg">Image source</a>

Meru Cabs slashes Delhi fares by 25%, criticises Uber and Ola for surge pricing

<keyword id="205081" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Meru">Meru</keyword>, the taxi services provider based in Mumbai, aims to be a $1 bn firm in the next six years. The company wants to expand in new cities and launch new services so that it can tap the potential of its existing markets. 
 
The company returned to profit in the December quarter after a huge gap of almost six quarters, and now aims to have a network of one lakh cars by 2022. By then, it will buy around 10,000 more vehicles. 
 
"We want to be a $ one billion organisation by 2022. We are having an year-on-year growth of 35 per cent. Last year, we grew at around 40 per cent," Meru Group CEO Siddhartha Pahwa told PTI. 
 
Meru currently operates taxi services in 23 cities, and has revenue of $ 120 million (Rs 730 crore) with a consumer base of 10 million. 
 
In the expansion plans, the company plans to expand to 45 cities by adding more tier-II cities like Patna, Bareilly, Bhopal, which have good potential by the end of next year. 
 
Out of a fleet of 20,000 cars, Meru owns 6,000 while rest are on aggregator business model. 
 
"We would continue to add 1,500- 2,000 cars every year in our own business, in which 1,000 would be for replacement of the old vehicles and rest would be addition. But on aggregator side, we are seeing 20-30 per cent growth every year," he said. 
 
"Some cities are making healthy profit at PBT level which we are ploughing back in some other cities but at gross profit level, each and every city is now making profit, which is a healthy sign," Pahwa said. 
 
"In these cities, we would continue to invest little bit more because for any city to grow, you need to make investment in terms of price offs, marketing, getting more drivers in the system. It would continue to be there," he said. 
 
Recently, Meru has launched two new services, including carpool and ride share, both of which are doing well. 
 
<a href="https://www.merucabs.com/images/meru_img6.jpg">Image source</a>

Taxi services provider Meru aims to be $1 billion firm by 2022

Don’t underestimate the power of a…Meru Cab. India’s only profit making taxi services company has recently raised around $25 million from Brand Capital, the investment arm of Bennett, Coleman and Co. Ltd (BCCL), the same group that publishes the Times of India newspaper. 
 
As per the official statement, the money will be used to strengthen the company’s foothold in the country’s domestic taxi-hailing market, increase brand awareness via advertising and promotions, and widen its customer segment. 
 “With the ongoing transformation in the taxi industry, this move is in line with the company's efforts to showcase its services to a larger customer segment via a bouquet of media channels,” said Siddhartha Pahwa, CEO, <keyword id="108722" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Meru-Cabs">Meru Cabs</keyword>. 
 
Since May 2015, when Meru last raised $50 million from its existing investor India Value Fund Advisors (IVFA), it has expanded its taxi service to 24 new cities, launched four new products and expanded its fleet size to over 20,000 vehicles. 
 
Meru entered the highly-competitive online taxi-hailing market back in 2007 when the Maharashtra government invited tenders for GPS-linked electronically metered cab for 10,000 cabs in 2006. 
 
Headquartered in Mumbai, Meru Cabs was launched with a mere 45 taxis back in 2007. It expanded operations to three cities in 2008, namelyDelhi, Hyderabad and Bengaluru, and followed it up with two more - Jaipur and Ahmedabad in 2013 and Chennai in 2015. 
 
India’s organized taxi-hailing market currently stands at over $1.2 billion, and is expected to touch $15 billion by 2022. This enormous opportunity at hand has led to a bitter price war between the likes of Uber and Ola. 
 
<a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/photo/46617743.cms">Image Source</a> 
 
(Disclaimer: Business Insider India is a part of Times Internet Limited, the online arm of Bennett, Coleman and Co. Ltd)

Meru Cabs raises $25 million from Times Group, looking to expand further

Mumbai-based taxi aggregator company <keyword id="108722" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Meru-Cabs">Meru Cabs</keyword> today announced an exclusive partnership with Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, to create awareness and promote the <keyword id="1068586" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Carpooling">carpooling</keyword> concept. With this tie-up, IOCL along with Meru aims to change its consumer’s behavior by asking them to start sharing their ‘Personal Car’ ride with people traveling in the same direction -by using ‘Carpool By Meru’ integrated on the ‘Meru Cabs’ mobile app. 
 
Focused on offering convenient travel options, Meru was the first cab operator to launch carpool service in India in September this year that can be availed in any Indian city by downloading the Meru Cabs App. 
 
Announcing the offer, Mr. Siddhartha Pahwa, CEO Meru Cabs said, “Carpooling is an excellent way for people to save on traveling costs, as well as reduce carbon emissions. Through this campaign we hope to encourage more and more people to adopt this convenient as well as <keyword id="6356826" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="environment">environment</keyword> friendly travel methods through our trusted services and thus promote the concept of shared economy.” 
 
To motivate its customers to begin sharing personal rides, the companies have declared a mega bumper prize of a brand new Toyota sedan car to the customer offering the maximum number of rides on Carpool by Meru. This offer is for customers based in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai &amp; Thane during the time period of 1st December to 31st January 2016. 
 
Also, as a part of a special promotional campaign, Meru is offering a discount of 50% (up to Rs.150) on app bookings only for Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) customers making a transaction of Rs.1000 or more at 30 of the IOCL retail outlets in Mumbai during the offer period.

Meru Cabs partners with Indian Oil Corporation
to promote carpooling

India is justifiably in frenzy over its capital’s deadly <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=air+pollution">air pollution</a> levels, and taxi aggregators are more than happy to milk Delhi’s already controversial odd-even policy. The country's only profitable online cab service <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Meru">Meru</a> today jumped onboard to offer a ride share option in Delhi NCR. With days to go, every player in the business is projecting ride share as an ‘eco-friendly’ option to solve Delhi’s crisis situation. Don’t believe me? Hear it from them. 
 Ishan Gupta, Category head, Shared Mobility at <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword> said, “We are cognizant of the fact that 13 of the top 20 most polluted cities in the world are in India, with vehicular pollution being the major source of pollution.” <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Uber">Uber</a> was not left wanting either. 
 
The company stressed that in its first eight months in LA, passengers did over 5 million carpool trips, cutting the carbon dioxide pollution by 1,400 metric tons. 
 
Ruchica Tomar, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Uber">Uber</a>’s Spokesperson said, “The government has taken a number of bold steps to deal with the problem of congestion and pollution but we believe that we all can do more to drive change in our cities by getting more people into fewer cars.” 
 
While ride-sharing must be encouraged, here’s the point. The idea that it will drastically reduce Delhi’s pollution is false. A recent study found that pollution from commuter vehicles account for only 2.5% of Delhi’s overall pollution. (<a href="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Diesel-vehicle-ban-may-not-clean-city-air/articleshow/50146994.cms">Source</a>) 
 
What more, while the overall taxi business is estimated at a whopping $7.5 billion by 2022 with a healthy 30% growth rate, most operators would also agree that it’s too early to put a deadline to when ride share might be profitable. 
 "Any new concept comes with a minimum bleed of 12-18 months. We've strong investors who back our decision, and we're happy to bear it", Siddhartha Pahwa, CEO, <keyword id="205081" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Meru">Meru</keyword> agreed. 
 
So if to bleed or not to bleed is not the question, why are taxi operators investing money and time into a scheme that is at such a nascent stage? You see the stakes are high, and the clientele huge. That’s exactly why they’re willing to take the gamble…and of course because they’re concerned citizens. Of course. 
 
Coming back to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Meru">Meru</a>, all of its 1500 cabs operating in Delhi NCR will now allow ride share. The company will ramp up its fleet by 20-30% to cope with the upcoming demand. It also plans to roll out ride share across 10 cities by mid 2016. A senior official said the company might extend ride share to its Eve and Genie variants too. 
 
The bottom-line is that if I'm getting my cab 30% cheaper, I'm game! I’m sure any Indian will be. 
 
Is that all we can do to solve Delhi’s <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=air+pollution">pollution</a>? Think. India, think. 
 
 Image credit: Indiatimes

Is Delhi’s ride-share frenzy worth it?

Starting January, Delhi government would make sure that both Delhi’s traffic and the polluted air that floats in Delhi are kept under check. It would be done by cutting the number of private cars on its roads by about half, allowing private cars with odd digits as registration numbers on one day and those with even on the next. The Delhi government is also making sure that there are enough buses, autorickshaws and Metro coaches to accommodate the resulting number of people relying on Delhi public transports. 
 On the other hand, the brains behind taxi companies and car aggregators such as <keyword id="1042120" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uber">Uber</keyword>, <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword> and <keyword id="205081" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Meru">Meru</keyword> Cabs are already planning on steps to take the best advantage of this step taken by the <keyword id="260213" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arvind-Kejriwal">Arvind Kejriwal</keyword> government. 
 Uber, for example, is planning to launch <keyword id="6591085" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="UberPool">UberPool</keyword>, its car pooling service, in Delhi after a successful run in Bengaluru. While Bangalore UberPool service is only meant for commercial vehicles, the Delhi arm would target the 28 lakh private car owners. 
 
Meru, on the other hand, will be launching a mobile app in January so that passengers can pool cabs online. "The app will identify two people within a radius of two-three km travelling in the same direction and can share their taxi ride," Meru CEO Siddhartha Pahwa told ET. "The driver will pick one person first and within 10 minutes will also pick up the second person." Meru, which is already running many cabs on Delhi roads, is expecting almost 30% rise in the demand for cabs during the trial period. To attract customers, it would offer 35% discount for ride sharing. Even if a passenger can't find someone to share the ride, he or she would still be given the discount. 
 
Ola, the taxi aggregator service, recently launched minibus shuttle services in Gurgaon and Noida, which they plan to extend to Delhi. The taxi-sharing app is being beta-tested in Bengaluru right now, and could very well be rolled out in NCR to make use of the odd-even rule. 
 
Delhi is one of the world's most heavily polluted cities, which is why the government has planned to launch this odd-even scheme. Starting January 1, a 15-day trial period would begin between 8 am and 8 pm, Monday to Saturday. As per the rule, odd-numbered cars would be allowed to run on odd dates and those with even numbers would be allowed on even dates. 
 
Home Minister Rajnath Singh has given his support to this the plan at a recent meeting he had Delhi CM Kejriwal. It means that Delhi Police, which comes under the control of the central government, would be taken on board to ease the application of this rule. 
 
To discuss a carpooling policy, fleet owners and taxi aggregators, including representatives of Pool my Ride, Embarq India, Tripda.in, Carzonrent, Uber, Ola, Shuttl.com, NearGroup.in, Ibibo Ryde, Mega Carpool Pvt., Mega Cabs, LetsDriveAlong.com, BaxiTaxi, Orahi and 
Cykul, had a meeting with the members of the Delhi Dialogue Commission, which serves as the think tank of the Delhi government. 
 
<a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/photo/Ola-to-invest-Rs-150-crore-in-Andhra-Pradesh/48986145.cms">Image source</a>

Cab aggregators to reap the benefits of Delhi’s Odd-Even car rule

BANGALORE: The fight to win over the Indian taxi passenger has intensified with aggregator Olacabs and cab hailing app Uber slashing prices by a fourth in Delhi—a development that is likely to force rivals to follow suit. 
 
While Ola has cut rates in its lowerend car business—Ola mini—to Rs 10 /km, Uber has cut prices for its premium segment Uber BLACK. Separately, the San Francisco-based taxi hailing app also announced that it will be launching its affordable ride service UberX in three more Indian cities: Mumbai, Chennai and Pune. “We are pushing our efficiency system to the maximum,” said Shailesh Sawlani, general manager of Uber in Mumbai. "We see this as a daily commute option for our riders and plan to maintain these prices if customers ride with us as much as we anticipate." 
 UberX Mumbai fares are Rs 15/km with a minimum base fare of Rs 50 and total minimum fare of Rs 125. The latest moves come after Uber cut its prices in Bangalore by 25% last month. Ola also reduced fares to Rs10/km for its <keyword id="2210965" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ola-Mini">Ola Mini</keyword> service in the Garden City. “We have been able to optimise our inventory,” said Pranay Jivrajka, vice president of operations at Olacabs. 
 
According to industry estimates, taxi companies are struggling to keep pace with the rising demand and on average cannot accommodate a fifth of the bookings. To address this problem Ola said it will increase the number of cabs available on its mobile app by about 35% to 3,200 in Delhi alone. Ola’s total fleet size is about 15,000. 
 
“These price cuts are just a starting point to acquire customers and establishing the brand image till the time you hit a critical mass,” said Arvind Singhal, chairman of Technopak. “At Rs 10/km Ola is making losses on each Ola Mini ride,” said a source directly familiar with the matter. Same is the case with Uber, according to another source. Uber’s price drop in Bangalore is, however, for a limited duration. 
 The company has not specified the timeframe. Other competitors like TaxiFor-Sure are focussing on discount codes to expand the customer base instead of cutting prices. “We keep doing event-related promotions and offer discount vouchers from time to time,” said Aprameya Radhakrishna, founder and chief executive of <keyword id="1428790" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="TaxiforSure">TaxiForSure</keyword>. 
 
“Till the time, taxi aggregators will not face pressure to turn profitable, the freebies will continue,” said Jaspal Singh, cofounder of Valoriser Consultants, which provides market research services for transportation companies. “These companies are looking to build valuation by expanding geographic reach, recruiting more number of drivers and attracting bookings to increase revenue.” 
 However other aggregators like <keyword id="108722" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Meru-Cabs">Meru Cabs</keyword> and Savaari cabs feel that price cuts is not sustainable long-term. “Meru does not believe in price wars,” said Siddhartha Pahwa, CEO of MERU Cabs. “Consumers will not take a cab because it’s cheap but for its reliability, safety and professional service.”

You Searched For "Siddhartha Pahwa" and got 10 results

EXCLUSIVE: Meru CEO isn’t afraid of competition from Uber and Ola. He thinks there is enough place to co-exist

Usha Rani Das

Meru Cabs is actually better-off after Ola and Uber began!

Poulomi Das

This is how Meru Cabs plans to give Ola and Uber a run for their money

BI India Bureau

Meru Cabs slashes Delhi fares by 25%, criticises Uber and Ola for surge pricing

BI India Bureau

Taxi services provider Meru aims to be $1 billion firm by 2022

BI India Bureau

Meru Cabs raises $25 million from Times Group, looking to expand further

BI India Bureau

Meru Cabs partners with Indian Oil Corporation to promote carpooling

BI India Bureau

Is Delhi’s ride-share frenzy worth it?

Saikat Pyne

Cab aggregators to reap the benefits of Delhi’s Odd-Even car rule

BI India Bureau

Win For Customers as Taxi Companies Like Olacabs, Uber Cut Fares In Delhi, Others May Follow

Economic Times

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You Searched For "Siddhartha Pahwa" and got 10 results

EXCLUSIVE: Meru CEO isn’t afraid of competition from Uber and Ola. He thinks there is enough place to co-exist

Usha Rani Das

Meru Cabs is actually better-off after Ola and Uber began!

Poulomi Das

​This is how Meru Cabs plans to give Ola and Uber a run for their money

BI India Bureau

Meru Cabs slashes Delhi fares by 25%, criticises Uber and Ola for surge pricing

BI India Bureau

Taxi services provider Meru aims to be $1 billion firm by 2022

BI India Bureau

Meru Cabs raises $25 million from Times Group, looking to expand further

BI India Bureau

Meru Cabs partners with Indian Oil Corporation to promote carpooling

BI India Bureau

Is Delhi’s ride-share frenzy worth it?

Saikat Pyne

Cab aggregators to reap the benefits of Delhi’s Odd-Even car rule

BI India Bureau

Win For Customers as Taxi Companies Like Olacabs, Uber Cut Fares In Delhi, Others May Follow

Economic Times

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides

This is how Meru Cabs plans to give Ola and Uber a run for their money