20000 downloads. 4000 active users.
Those are the statistics of the 'Amchi Drive' app launched by the city's kaali peeli taxis on 1 July 2017.
The humble kaali peeli, mainstay of the city's public transport for over five decades, has decided to get itself a smart makeover with the help of the new app. The Mumbaikar, however, isn't biting, if we go by the lukewarm response. The app was developed by Bengaluru-based Sun Telematics and launched by the Mumbai Taximen's Union at the beginning of this month. The idea was to take the Uber and Ola bull by the horns and aim to provide a service that would please. But that's an uphill task, given the immense popularity of the new kids on the block - the aggregator cabs that have been around for barely a couple of years now.
The union is, however, gung ho about its new initiative. It has got a 3.8 rating on the Google play store, and a majority of the demand is from south Mumbai, claims the union. It also claims that an additional 50 to 60 taxi owners are signing up for the app. Taximen's Union president A L Quadros says that it would soon have 10,000 kaali peeli taxis on its roster. Quadros adds that most of the demand is currently coming from places like Dadar, CST and Mumbai Central, says Sun Telematics chief executive officer B Vilas.
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