Ola looks to double fleet size with new platform for drivers

Firm claims it is adding 1,200-1,300 cars everyday, expects to grow exponentially with this 'Ola Operator' initiative

Taxi-aggregator Ola today introduced 'Ola Operator', a mobile platform to help its drivers graduate to operators. The company expects that the initiative would double its fleet size from the current 450,000 in the near-term, a company executive said today.

"Ola Operator has been built for entrepreneurs who have grown from one car to many on the Ola platform over the years, as well as operators who own cars, and employ drivers," Anand Subramanian, the senior director of marketing communications at Ola told reporters here.

"We expect this initiative, and our other recent initiatives to help Ola double its fleet size from 4.5 lakh, in the near-term. While we haven't set a target, we are adding at least 1,200-1,300 cars everyday, and expect to grow exponentially with this initiative," he added.

The Ola Operator platform will enable operators to track the location of the vehicles, monitor the log-in, earnings and performance from a single window.

Subramanian also said Ola has introduced various new categories over the past year like Ola ride-sharing, Ola Micro and most recently Ola Lux.

"We are currently working on a pilot for intra-city commuting, and will roll it out in the various categories we have launched," he said.

Ride-hailing services including Ola and Uber have most recently been under fire in various states including NCR, Karnataka and Maharashtra for surge pricing.

While Subramanian said that a cap on surge pricing could affect the company, it will comply with any guidelines issued by the government on the same.

Ola operates in 102 Indian cities, and expects that the launch of the new offering will promote cab operators, and help its entrepreneurs succeed at scale.

Ola raised $500 million in December last year, and is reportedly valued at $5 billion.