Forget Ola-Uber, Mumbai's S3 Cabs brings women drivers for safety!
What's the story
The newest cab-aggregator in Mumbai, S3 Cabs, seems to have brought a range of progressive changes with it. For one, it says it'll focus more on drivers' benefits, unlike Uber and Ola. Seven hundred drivers, mostly from these rivals, had already joined S3 by the time it launched earlier this month. Now it's giving passengers the option of choosing from male and female drivers!
Safety
CCTV cameras in cabs will record audio and video
The purpose of the facility is to ensure passenger safety, especially of women, S3 said. It has already received 350 applications from women drivers. The option to choose drivers will be available in a month, Director Sohel Kazani said. But that's not all. "There will be CCTV cameras inside the cabs to record audio and click photos once the customer presses the SOS button."
Comfort
No surge pricing, multi-linguistic drivers, but no cab-sharing
S3 will also train its drivers in seven different languages, including English, Hindi, Gujarati and French, to accommodate the city's multicultural residents and international tourists. A major clincher is that there won't be any surge pricing in S3, a feature that often makes Uber and Ola rise prices drastically during peak demand. One drawback: passengers won't have the option of 'sharing' S3 cabs.
Drivers
Range of benefits for drivers too
Talking about drivers' benefits, Kazani said, "Drivers will not be charged for first Rs. 1,800 collection everyday, and after that, they'll be charged only 10%, which is just 50% of what Uber and Ola charge their drivers." However, he admits that this way, he might not be able to make profits. So he has other plans: he'd deploy his cab-partners into transportation and delivery.