Indian version of "taxi software"

According to foreign media reports, Praveen Narayan Dusane drove a three-wheeled motor vehicle like China's "Momo" on the streets of Bangalore, India, toward the next guest's location. The recent business was excellent. He had already bought a $ 33,000 apartment through his trishaw ride and sent his three daughters to the English language school.

But the past life is not so for him. He had to bargain for every rupee, and he even had to wait a couple of hours to find the next passenger, and he fought fierce competition with the other drivers. In those days, he usually only earned Rs 300 per day, about 30 Rp, for a period of up to 12 hours a day.

But it is different now. Since the Indian version of Autowale, a taxi software program, Mr. Dusane knows his schedule every day simply by checking his text messages. "In the past, I had to wait, and sometimes I could not get a ride all day, so it was a real chance for my passengers to go for a ride, now it is different, and it feels like there's money floating in front of you."

In this jam-packed country, a handful of startups are leveraging IT to find patrons in a more convenient way for three-wheeler drivers. These local developers beat Uber and Lyft two exotic taxi applications with on-premise applications.

Mr. Butowale, Mr. Dusane's employer, uses algorithms to chart out driving routes to maximize the capacity of three-wheeler drivers. This three-wheeled motor vehicle is a local feature of India, with shades of black and yellow. India's bus punctuality rate is very bad, the subway can reach a limited location, the taxi is very small and expensive. So that makes this three-wheeled motor vehicles everywhere. However, the price of passengers traveling on tricycles depends on negotiation skills and luck. Most drivers often refuse short-distance customers on the grounds that their return-trip costs can not be met.

So Autowale is trying to make it easier to allocate resources by providing on-demand operational routes. Passengers can call a car through the company's application or website, as well as through an older call center, paying about 33 cents per passenger.

Although Uber landed in India last September, but the service fee is expensive, the basic focus in the taxi market. In addition Autowale does not have all the advanced features of Uber. It does not use GPS positioning because most drivers do not have a smartphone. In contrast, the founders have created an algorithm that predicts the customer's potential location and allocates the three-wheeled motor vehicle route accordingly. Their service sends a schedule to the driver via SMS.

Autowale promises drivers a higher pay. But in return, the company charges 10% to 15% commission. Autowale is not yet profitable, but last year its revenue had hit $ 335,000. It also insures its drivers, which is rare in India.

The company initially enlisted 400 tricycle drivers. However, since these drivers do not need to be responsible for the Autowale company, sometimes receiving a list will also be the immediate end of life. So there appeared a passenger can not wait for the car, the driver can not find the dilemma of passengers. And, reciprocating to form a vicious cycle.

So in the summer of 2011, they improved their model, hired five full-time drivers, and gave them a fixed income. Their job is to make sure passengers who are getting in the car can get in the car for a limited time.

Mr. Prasad, Head of Autowale, said, "We told them that we signed a six-month contract and we will provide you with a source and a guarantee to raise your income." In the next three months, 75 drivers entered them The system, the daily capacity of more than 100 people.

Autowale now has 850 employees - including about 250 full-time employees, carrying about 100,000 passengers a year. After its success in Bangalore, it is planning to launch the service in three other Indian cities. Now, it is busy raising funds for expansion. (Bing Han)