Uber, Ola battle it out for railway passengers: Here's how it will work

After fighting it out on roads, cab aggregators like Uber and Ola are set to come face to face on railway tracks. Both the players are now in race to tie up with the Indian Railways to offer services to train travellers.

With the Suresh Prabhu-led railways ministry toying with the idea to offer space for cab operators at railway stations, both the market leaders have started the battle to garner the railways' market share. Through this initiative, the Railways is likely to add an additional Rs 120 crore to its non-fare revenue. 

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As per the plan, those users who book tickets through Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) app will be able to schedule a ride with a cab aggregator on a future date and time. If the Railways moves ahead with the plan, it will have to float a tender for this from the concerned parties.

The other major service providers in the sector are Baxi, Shuttl, Meru and BlaBlaCar. Though the San Francisco-based Uber is aggressively moving ahead in Indian market, Ola still holds a majority share.

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Ola to raise fleet by 40,000 after Mahindra tie-up

Ola, a ride-hailing firm, and Mahindra & Mahindra, an automobile firm, have announced a tie-up, to raise the fleet strength on Ola's platform by 40,000 vehicles over the next two years. The addition will primarily be the Verito, earlier called the Logan.

“This is not just a tie-up between Ola and Mahindra Auto but the entire group,” said Anand Mahindra, chairman, Mahindra Group.

Ola drivers will be eligible for Mahindra financing, where they would get up to 100 per cent financing on new and pre-owned vehicles. The services of Mahindra’s insurance arm would be offered to drivers; Ola drivers would come under M&M’s corporate social responsibility scheme.

Mahindra stressed this was not an exclusive tie-up, leaving the door open for alliances with Ola’s big rival in this country, Uber. The financial incentives are exclusive.

Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder and chief executive, Ola, said there would only be a conventional fuel car exchange for now but saw the possibility of soon adding Mahindra’s electric vehicles to the fleet. “This is an initiative that meets the current future needs of the the Indian consumer, particularly the young who read more..

Mumbai commuters face morning chaos as auto-rickshaw strike kicks in

Suburban commuters in the Greater Mumbai region were left scrambling on Wednesday morning as more than 80,000 auto rickshaws stayed off the roads to protest against cab aggregators such as Uber and Ola.

Adding to their woes, a number of taxis with affiliation to Uber and Ola also stayed off the roads in the suburbs, likely for fear of violence.

As a result, long lines were to be seen at bus stop as office-goers tried to get to their workplace or the nearest railway station.

The three-wheelers, which provide a cheap and quick option for local transport are on a day-long strike demanding formulation of strict rules and regulations against taxi aggregators. Commuters in the suburbs were also seen trying to flag down the handful of auto-rickshaws that were plying in the hope of getting a shared ride.

In certain parts, kaali-peeli taxis, as the city’s ubiquitous black-and-yellow cabs are known locally, were also not plying even though the union has not included them in read more..