Growing Acceptance of Cab Services in Urban India

Driving especially after long work hours and a hectic day can be a tedious activity in over populated cities. But thanks to the growing organized car rental industry and the support of technology that in order to commute between places, all people have to do is to download the mobile app on their smart phones and simply book a cab or a taxi anytime and from any place. Playing a major role as a transportation substitute in many cities in India Taxis can now be used to complement insufficient public transport systems based on trains or buses. Countries which are developed can use taxis as an alternative mode of transportation as compared to developing ones where such services are availed as there is lack of good public transport support facility. There is a growing need of cab services in an extremely busy lifestyle where you can save lot of energy and feel relaxed of not holding the steering wheel for hours. In urban areas among the various modes of transportation, cabs are coming up with an important mode of transportation in metropolitan cities of India. Car rental sector has undergone lot of transformation due to technological growth. Rising Smartphone users and a huge development of the ecosystem of internet diffusion the business of cab aggregator is receiving a vigorous boost. In a country where the transport infrastructure is still rasping and safe public and private commuting options are very less companies namely Ola, Uber, Meru and TaxiForSure are showing a boom in demand for the cab services because of shift in user lifestyle towards on demand services and convenience. Two major players in this market which are Ola and Uber have shown an explosive growth over previous years as they charge less as compared to the prices of auto rickshaws. Both these dominant players which are becoming highly popular among Indian consumers have a keen desire to increase their market share, attain economies of scale and ultimately provide customer satisfaction. These cab aggregators are continuing to spend heavily on marketing, recruiting thousands of drivers and offering discounts to their customers. Also considerable investments in GPS devices and communication systems are improving the services given by taxi players through better car rides. This paper makes a qualitative attempt to do a comparative study of two such cab service aggregators which have drastically changed the way in which Indian consumers commute on a daily basis-UBER and OLA. The paper is qualitative and makes an attempt to recognize the Indian Cab service market dynamics, an overview of the Car Aggregation industry in India, current scenario, issues and the recent developments in the industry are highlighted. Anin-depth overview on the business models of Uber and Ola has also been made which are focusing on matching the demand and the supply, resulting in a win-win scenario for customers, drivers and cab aggregators.