Ola teams up with Via to allow travel agents book cabs for customers

Tie-up to allow 75,000 odd brick and mortar travel agents on Via book cabs on Ola for customers

Assisted online travel booking service Via.com has tied up with India's largest cab hailing platform Ola to enable booking of cabs for both local as well as outstation travel. The partnership will allow the 75,000 odd brick and mortar travel agents on Via book cabs on Ola for customers.

With the Via integration, users will be able to find, book and track cabs on all of Ola's categories on web as well as mobile without having the Ola app installed on their devices. It will help the company provide a more wholesome service of cabs, flights, hotels, etc to its users that include travel agents, corporates and individuals.

"This partnership with Ola will not only help in solving on road transportation needs of individual users but will also help travel agents, deliver a complete travel experience for their customers through the Via platform," said Swaminathan Vedaranyam, CEO at Via, in a statement.

Ola, which is battling it out with global rival Uber for dominance in India's taxi aggregator space, is looking at ways to increase the number of drivers as well as customers on its platform. The company opened up its application process interface (API) late last year with the goal to get 100 million users on its platform through third party integrations.

Moreover, the company has also made it easier for local fleet operators to list their cars on its platform and has launched an app to allow them to track multiple cars on its platform. Ola, which launched its service in late 2010, initially positioned itself as a more affordable and easier to use alternative to local taxis.

"With this API integration on Via's website and app, we are unlocking access to seamless on-ground transportation solutions for millions of their customers as well as partners," said Anuj Sahai, Vice President of Alliances at Ola.