Sivasankaran's cab service to roll out in three cities

After the Chennai and Hyderabad markets, serial entrepreneur and former Aircel promoter C Sivasankaran’s taxi aggregator service, UTOO, is set to make inroads into Bengaluru, Mumbai and Pune.

The Chennai-based start-up is competing with taxi aggregator majors Uber and Ola. Billionaire investor Ajay Piramal bought a minor stake in it months after its launch last year.

The development comes at a time when Uber and Ola drivers are protesting falling earnings in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Chandigarh.

Sivasankaran said UTOO had got licence in Bengaluru and it would target a fleet of up to 9,500 cars, with 500 for a start, funded by company itself. Declining to elaborate on strategy, he said, “Customers are intelligent and can make out the difference between exploitation and reasonable service.”

He added UTOO drivers would not have to pay the 20 per cent other aggregators charge from drivers. The company will start the service in the next two weeks in Bengaluru.

According to reports, the information technology hub is the largest market in India for Ola and Uber, accounting for about a third of their combined business, with 150,000 taxis.

UTOO will expand its service to Mumbai and Pune by April. By the end of the calendar year, it hopes to be present in 12 cities. “Our idea is not to replace Uber or Ola. We want to set standards which other service providers will follow,” said Sivasankaran.

UTOO’s expansion comes at a time of trouble for Uber and Ola as they battle for customers. Drivers complain their earnings have halved over six months. According to reports, Ola and Uber have added around 600,000 vehicles in the past five years.