Cab operators cash in on commuters' misery

Pavneet Singh Chadha

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 21

Commuters had to face a lot of inconvenience as their vehicles were stranded in traffic jams for hours after the rainfall. Due to waterlogging and choked drains, a number of vehicles broke down on city roads.

To add to the misery of office-goers, ‘surge’ on taxi aggregators such as Ola and Uber had risen exponentially by a multiple of 3. For a distance of about 10 km, the cabs were charging an exorbitant rate of Rs 350-Rs 370 for the low-cost UberGo and Ola Mini categories in the morning. The fares had normalised by afternoon.

When contacted on the issue of ‘surge pricing’, an official from Uber said: “Upfront fares are calculated using an algorithm that takes into consideration the expected time and distance of the trip, local traffic patterns, demand and supply at a given location. We are able to use past data to estimate the likely cost of the trip and can present that price to a rider before they request for a ride. When dynamic pricing kicks in due to high demand, it incentivises driver partners to get their cars out on the roads to address the demand. In the process, we are able to not just predict demand and supply but also bring down the wait times for riders.”

Bike taxi service continued

Uber Moto, bike taxi service, continued their service in the city after the rain had stopped. Uber, in an email on Saturday, had stated that the bike service was being tested on a ‘pilot’ basis in Chandigarh. The permit allows the driver partners to ply their two-wheeler taxis in Mohali area, including Zirakpur and Kharar.

Several UT sectors remain powerless

Chandigarh: Residents of several sectors here remained without power for a few hours following heavy rain on Monday. While officials of the Electricity Department claimed that the supply was restored after the rain stopped, residents in several sectors faced power cut for hours. Complaint centres of the Electricity Department received more than 70 complaints from Sectors 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 23, 24 41, 44, 8, 7, Burail, 37, 38, 39, 40 and other southern sectors. Ashish, a resident of Sector 53, said disruption of power supply had become a routine after rain. Another resident of Mani Majra said there was no power supply for several hours after the rain in the locality. Some sectors faced power outage after branches from tree fell on electricity wires. Similar complaints were also reported from villages and other colonies of the city. tns