Taxi firms step on the gas in Kolkata

The city is the fastest-growing market outside the US for taxi aggregator Uber

Taxi companies are increasing their footprint at a phenomenal pace in Kolkata as its commuters open up to a new form of public transport.

The city is the fastest-growing market outside the US for Uber, the San Francisco-based taxi aggregator that is fighting regulators in Delhi.  "We are growing at a rate of 40 per cent in Kolkata. Such growth is unprecedented, " said Neeraj Singhal, head of expansion, Uber.

The company launched services in Kolkata last September and has since been increasing its fleet. "We have been able to bring down the estimated time of arrival to 3 minutes," Singhal said.
 

Uber received a shot in the arm when the Bidhannagar commissionerate in the city decided to regulate the company under the Information Technology Act. Apart from Kolkata, Uber has operations in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh and Kochi in India.

Olacabs, a late entrant, is engaged in hectic promotion. "The taxi culture was prevalent in Kolkata, so when offered a better alternative, people are ready to pay the incentive," said a spokesperson of Olacabs. The company plans to increase its 750 cab fleet to 1,000.

Not just aggregators like Uber and Olacabs, radio taxi operator Meru Cabs has seen business growing at 100 per cent, month on month, in the last five months. "From a fleet 150 taxis when we launched in September, we have grown to 650 and this shows the demand," says Siddharth Pahwa, chief executive of Meru Cabs.

"Across India, we charge Rs 20 for a km but Kolkata fares have been kept at Rs 12 and passengers are willing to pay a little higher than the traditional taxis for safety and comfort," Pahwa said.

Mega Cabs, which launched services in the city in 2010, is also seeing an upswing in the last one year. "Five years ago we were the only player. Other companies are joining the fray and still there is a demand-supply mismatch, It is an indication that Kolkata is a lucrative market," said Kunal Lalani, founder of Mega Cabs. The company is eyeing a fleet of 1,000 cars by 2016.

Unruly behaviour by drivers of metered taxis in the city has been a deterrent for commuters. There have been numerous cases of harassment by Kolkata's taxi drivers. The state government's decision to reduce the amount of fine for taxi drivers is expected to worsen the situation.