Finally I got a chance to try Uber! After so much of speculation about it's "on demand" taxi hire business model, I had an opportunity to try it out. I had to rush home after a team dinner at Boat Club, RA Puram. The closest cab was 12 mins away when I pinned my location, It was a White Honda City with a fancy 6161 no. plate.
Cab reached in less than the promised time and I should mention it was neat and in very good condition, the driver wore a white uniform & I instructed him to Velachery MRTS station.
The car in which I was travelling, a 2006 Honda City Exi has been purchased for Rs. 2,25,000, specifically for Uber by driver Madhavan. He added that it is very difficult to get business now a days and that was not the scenario 3 months earlier. What I understood was Uber is aggressively on boarding vehicle owners but the demand from customers has remained almost the same for past few months. But Madhavan is very confident that internet and mobiles are the future and the business is surely set to increase.
Uber's commission works pretty much like how it is in the US, 20%. So the drivers are paid their share (80%) on a weekly basis. Let me share some commercials here, my Uber driver enjoys a weekly pay out of Rs. 20,000, that's something close to Rs. 3500 worth of business everyday (including Uber's share). Uber seems to be a very profitable business for Cab drivers if they are ready to be available at least 18 hrs a day. Madhavan says, salary for an experienced driver like him is around Rs. 20,000 per month whereas now, through Uber, he makes more than double of it, in his convenient time.
According to him there are around 3000 cabs attached to Uber currently and the Phase 1 plan is under way to raise this no. to 7000 and Uber aims to get their app in atleast 10 lakh people around Chennai. Although I couldn't understand when they are trying to reach these numbers.
Let's work out some random figures.
If Uber onboards 7000 cars & Say each car pays a commission of around Rs. 600 per day to Uber
That's close to Rs. 12.5 Crores per month for Uber, 150 Crores per annum in Phase 1 from Chennai alone! It certainly sounds like a Win-Win for both the drivers & Uber!
But, have a look at my receipt :) somewhat 33% more than what I pay to Fast Track or a local Taxi guy.
The car in which I was travelling, a 2006 Honda City Exi has been purchased for Rs. 2,25,000, specifically for Uber by driver Madhavan. He added that it is very difficult to get business now a days and that was not the scenario 3 months earlier. What I understood was Uber is aggressively on boarding vehicle owners but the demand from customers has remained almost the same for past few months. But Madhavan is very confident that internet and mobiles are the future and the business is surely set to increase.
Uber's commission works pretty much like how it is in the US, 20%. So the drivers are paid their share (80%) on a weekly basis. Let me share some commercials here, my Uber driver enjoys a weekly pay out of Rs. 20,000, that's something close to Rs. 3500 worth of business everyday (including Uber's share). Uber seems to be a very profitable business for Cab drivers if they are ready to be available at least 18 hrs a day. Madhavan says, salary for an experienced driver like him is around Rs. 20,000 per month whereas now, through Uber, he makes more than double of it, in his convenient time.
According to him there are around 3000 cabs attached to Uber currently and the Phase 1 plan is under way to raise this no. to 7000 and Uber aims to get their app in atleast 10 lakh people around Chennai. Although I couldn't understand when they are trying to reach these numbers.
Let's work out some random figures.
If Uber onboards 7000 cars & Say each car pays a commission of around Rs. 600 per day to Uber
That's close to Rs. 12.5 Crores per month for Uber, 150 Crores per annum in Phase 1 from Chennai alone! It certainly sounds like a Win-Win for both the drivers & Uber!
But, have a look at my receipt :) somewhat 33% more than what I pay to Fast Track or a local Taxi guy.
Uber Email Receipt
Rs. 329 for a 10.5 Km ride in 35 mins for the luxury of Honda City and "Don't Pay while getting out" convenience. Yea, my credit card was charged automatically when driver terminated the journey upon arriving the destination and I was emailed this receipt. I guess UberX would have costed a little less (They send Etios or Dzire sedans in UberX).
Alright! download the app and try Uber sometime! happy err errr Uberrring!
Alright! download the app and try Uber sometime! happy err errr Uberrring!
