This was uber quick!
Less than a week back Ola had signed an MoU with Bengaluru International Airport to provide cabs instantaneously to the city along with a reserved parking spot at the airport.
How could Ola’s biggest rival stay behind in the race? Uber, San Francisco-based cab aggregator, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Bengaluru Kempegowda International Airport which allows Uber to keep a designated parking space for its cabs and a pick up area named ‘U Zone’ for its riders.
The official press note from Uber read, “Through this MoU, Uber will be given a dedicated parking area and pick-up zone called ‘U Zone’ which is located at P2 within the airport premises. U-Zone has been created to streamline traffic and reduce congestion at the pick up lanes.”
According to Uber, there will be company’s executives at the airport to help passengers find their cars easily and give them access to wi-fi incase they face network issues. This is not only generating jobs but also guiding passengers to their cab booked.
More about the new service
The parking spot is located at Airport premise P2 and there will be Uber executive at all times to guide you to your cab.
To book an Uber from the Bengaluru Airport, one must open the app and change the pickup location to ‘U-Zone’. After punching your destination in the Uber app, you will be helped to locate your cab at the pickup location almost instantaneously.
On signing the MoU, Bhavik, Rathod, General Manager, Uber West & South, said “We are excited to announce this one of a kind partnership with BIAL and look forward to working with them to introduce innovative solutions in order to enhance the experience of passenger’s journey from end to end.”
The perks that come with a designation parking spot are nearly 100% confirmation of booking at all times, along with extremely low wait times. Bengaluru Airport is one of the busiest ones in India and it makes sense for cab aggregators to get a fixed spot at the airport.
How does Uber’s service compare to Ola’s?
Uber has claimed that all rides from the airport to the city will cost Rs. 8 per km, be it a hatchback, sedan or an SUV. While on Ola, the price will be dependent on the type of vehicle requested. This is definitely going to make Ola burn for the price it offers on sedans.
The base price of Rs. 80 along with a toll of Rs. 120 will also be collected from the customer for the trip, along with Re. 1 per minute of the ride time.
Apart from Bengaluru Airport, Uber has not communicated about any such spots and zones at other areas like the railway stations and intercity bus stops, which it plans to expand to. Ola, on the other hand, has already planned its expansion to these connections as soon as possible.
Both the services have their pros and cons, and in case of just Bengaluru Airport, it makes sense to take an Uber since the fare chart is same for all types of vehicles. Additionally, Uber has planned it out well to help the riders locate their cars as soon as they book a cab.
Let us know in the comments section how both the cab-aggregators are fighting it out at the airport.
Source: Uber Newsroom
