Taxi Technology Post-Uber: What’s new?
At the end of July, Hailo, the UK’s licensed cab e-hailing app, was bought up by German giant Daimler. The plan appears to be to merge Hailo with the car giant’s own taxi-app, MyTaxi, and create Europe’s largest taxi e-hailing company.
Plowing £millions of investment into the ride-hailing app market, it could be just the news licensed cabbies have been waiting for in the fight back against Uber and comes at the same time as Volkswagen has invested $300million in Gett, and General Motors has put money into Lyft.
What does the Hailo deal mean for taxi drivers?
Hailo currently operates in London, Manchester, Leeds, and Liverpool, connecting customers with licensed taxi drivers including the iconic black cabs, and offering traditional taxi firms the technology they need to compete with Uber.
Under the planned new merger with MyTaxi, Hailo will be rebranded under the MyTaxi brand and will become bigger and stronger to more effectively compete with Uber.
The investments in Gett and Lyft similarly will help push these apps, which are also designed for licensed cabs, helping traditional taxi drivers to take on the unlicensed Uber drivers.
New apps out there
Karhoo launched in London in May, representing around 30,000 licensed cabs including 8,000 black cabs. This app promises customers a three to five-minute pick up time and puts choice into customers hands by showing the fixed price fares of all the cars signed up to the app in the local area.
Significantly, Addison Lee, the UK’s largest minicab firm, is one of the firms signed up.
Other app news from across the pond
The women and children only SafeHer is planned to launch in the US in the Autumn, and will tap into the women-only taxi market. In the UK, female-only taxi firms exist, including Pink Ladies and London Lady Chauffeurs, but there are no dedicated apps …yet.
Using other technology to woo customers
Introducing super-fast WiFi for passengers across London is one of the plans being put forward to woo more customers back to traditional black cabs. And the major investment in green technology, putting black cabs on track to be zero emissions capable by 2018, is another draw.
Staying competitive
With Uber taking an ever-larger share of the market, taxi drivers need to take steps to maintain their competitive edge.
Signing up for an e-hailing app is one way to get your services out to prospective customers, but getting the best deal on all outgoings, like insurance is another.
Park Insurance has 30 years of working with the taxi industry and understand the specialist needs of drivers, from the right level of public liability insurance to making sure all claims are dealt with swiftly so you can get back on the road quickly to keep on earning.
We work with some of the UK’s largest providers to get taxi drivers the right level of cover at the best price possible.
Call our experienced team today on 0117 955 6835 to find out more.