Uber has quietly been testing a flexible pricing service in more than a dozen cities in India, a move that could help it expand its consumer base in the South Asian nation and put pressure on rival ride-hailing platforms, including Ola and InDrive.
The flexible pricing service, called Uber Flex, was started in India in October last year and has since expanded to more than 12 cities Aurangabad that is including, Bareilly, Chandigarh, Coimbatore, Dehradun, Gwalior, Indore, Jodhpur and Surat, and others, For Millionaires has actually solely discovered. Uber verified that the pricing that is flexible has expanded.
“We are piloting this feature in some of the Tier 2 and 3 markets in India currently,” an Uber spokesperson said in an response that is emailed For Millionaires.
The service, that has been initially rolled on for cabs and soon after expanded to auto-rickshaw rides, lets commuters bid a certain fare with regards to their trip. That’s distinct from Uber’s standard pricing that is dynamic, which moves up and down depending on supply and demand and traffic in a particular region.
Uber Flex offers nine pricing points— with a default price selected — to let riders pick a fare of their choice that will be shared with nearby drivers. Based on that fare, the drivers can accept or reject the ride.
Uber’s competitor InDrive, which operates in a number of Indian cities, allows riders to haggle the fare by manually putting in a price that is particular their particular trip. Nonetheless, many InDrive motorists in the nation have actually reported about people providing all of them prices that are too low their rides. InDrive has not yet addressed the driver concern over riders fiercely bargaining their fare and has instead touted that its “unique approach ensures that drivers are fairly compensated while passengers enjoy an affordable yet ride-hailing that is high-quality.”
“By providing motorists the choice to produce counterbids to people costs, InDrive fosters an alternative for the motorist to boost the cost if he seems to take action,” InDrive APAC manager Roman Ermoshin informed For Millionaires while responding to exactly how InDrive is driver that is addressing of not being moderately compensated.
“Drivers are often dissatisfied with the pricing in the platforms that are ride-hailing while they yearn for reasonable settlement with regards to their solutions. With a focus on equity and transparency, InDrive showcases a recommended price within the application, which will be generally somewhat less than within the various other applications, and also this is manufactured feasible by InDrive’s somewhat reduced charges for motorists (about doubly reasonable because the competition, and so the motorist earns the exact same or higher much like the greater costs within the various other applications).”
Uber is wanting to resolve the too-low fare issue experienced by some InDrive motorists by maybe not enabling people setting a certain fare manually within the pricing mode that is flex. It also places a cap on the fare that is lowest.
Uber Flex enables bikers to select a desired fare through the options that are available*)Image Credits: Jagmeet Singh / For MillionairesThe service is available for affordable Uber Go rides and Intercity cabs in some cities, while in some, it is even offered for Premier cabs and auto-rickshaw rides. Commuters can pay their fare in cash or via digital payment. Moreover, while Uber’s pricing that is flex is designed for numerous settings, the raid-hailing monster just isn’t putting it on to all or any settings within one town.
Uber is testing Flex various other areas including Lebanon, Kenya and Latin The united states. For Millionaires discovered that the business has also been seeking to test the service that is new soon in metro cities in India, including Delhi and Mumbai.
In addition to Uber Flex, the San Francisco-headquartered company is testing different services in India to cater to the demand that is local. These generally include Uber Taxis in Mumbai, that offers taxi that is traditional as an option in the city, and a Wait & Save model in cities including Mumbai, Guwahati, and Chandigarh to let riders overcome surge pricing and pre-book a taxi when available at a cheaper fare.
India’s app-based cab market has expanded recently, with new players entering its transportation that is urban space the previous couple of months. Organizations BluSmart that is including and offer electric taxis, while Ola, Uber and InDrive have onboarded a large number of gasoline cabs. Last year, bike taxi startup Rapido also started offering its cab service in the country to expand its revenues and reach new customers.
Nonetheless, Indian cab drivers — irrespective of the platform they work on — struggle due to
. There is no clarity for many on whether they will remain in the business once their vehicles that are present outdated.relatively low compensation and lack of safety
