UNB, Dhaka :
Uber, the world’s largest on-demand ridesharing company, has launched ridesharing option “UberPOOL” allowing riders to join or pool with other riders in the same vehicleto minimise the cost of the trip.
Ratul Ghosh, Head of Bangladesh & East India, of Uber, formally came up with the announcement at a press conference at a city hotel on Tuesday, marking three years of its operation in Bangladesh.
“UberPOOL’ is a new ridesharing option that allows riders to join, or ‘POOL’, with other riders with similar routes in the same Uber, and share the cost of the trip. The trip fare on it can be up to 40 percent lower than the UberX fare for the same distance,” said Ratul.
He said, they are proud to be an important part of Bangladesh’s mobility ecosystem for the past three years and are continuing their commitment to the market with the launch of UberPOOL.”
Urban experts think UberPOOL is cost effective, but it involves many security concerns in a country like Bangladesh where many untoward incidents happen in public transport.
They said the government should first review the safety measures and make some guidelines to allow the ridesharing company to launch such a risky service.
“Pool system is there in many countries where adequate safety measures are ensured. I think it won’t be wise for Uber to launch the service before proper experiments. They can first allow it during the day time on a limited scale, but not at night in any away,” said urban expert Professor Nazrul Islam.
He also said, mixed ride (male and female together) should not be allowed at the initial stage as the sexual harassment is still a big concern in public transport here. “People should be familiar with the service and aware of its safety issues before initiating the service in full swing.”
Another urban and transport expert Iqbal Habib said Uber first needs to make members of those who want to use UberPOOL collecting adequate information about every member. “They must have a proper profile of every member. Besides, Uber must train its driver-partners to provide such service ensuring commuters’ security. It’ll have to promise the commuters that it’ll take responsibility if anything bad happens.”
He said the government should not allow Uber or any ridesharing company to operate pool service without formulating guidelines for it. “The government should also examine whether the safety measures taken by Uber is adequate and time-befitting to check untoward incidents. Or else, it’ll be a risky venture which will cause disaster.”
Habib also echoed Nazrul saying mixed ride should not be allowed at the initial stage considering the country’s socio-cultural problems.
Uber launched its service in Bangladesh three years back with many promises to bring about a change in commuting experience, but expert said it still could not ensure international standard service as the company’s main focus is on making money. They also said Uber is failing to ensure quality service as the company has apparently compromised with Dhaka’s bad traffic culture ignoring its brand value and international service standard.
“We expect quality and international-standard services from Uber. Initially, the company’s service was good, but it has gradually deteriorated. We often heard many allegations from the users about the frustrating services of the company, said Prof Nazrul”.
He said most drivers of the company are not trained enough to maintain the quality services while many of them misbehave with riders demonstrating their traditional attitude. The urban expert also said universities and different organisations should conduct research on ridesharing services to help the companies to improve their services with effective suggestions.
Uber, the world’s largest on-demand ridesharing company, has launched ridesharing option “UberPOOL” allowing riders to join or pool with other riders in the same vehicleto minimise the cost of the trip.
Ratul Ghosh, Head of Bangladesh & East India, of Uber, formally came up with the announcement at a press conference at a city hotel on Tuesday, marking three years of its operation in Bangladesh.
“UberPOOL’ is a new ridesharing option that allows riders to join, or ‘POOL’, with other riders with similar routes in the same Uber, and share the cost of the trip. The trip fare on it can be up to 40 percent lower than the UberX fare for the same distance,” said Ratul.
He said, they are proud to be an important part of Bangladesh’s mobility ecosystem for the past three years and are continuing their commitment to the market with the launch of UberPOOL.”
Urban experts think UberPOOL is cost effective, but it involves many security concerns in a country like Bangladesh where many untoward incidents happen in public transport.
They said the government should first review the safety measures and make some guidelines to allow the ridesharing company to launch such a risky service.
“Pool system is there in many countries where adequate safety measures are ensured. I think it won’t be wise for Uber to launch the service before proper experiments. They can first allow it during the day time on a limited scale, but not at night in any away,” said urban expert Professor Nazrul Islam.
He also said, mixed ride (male and female together) should not be allowed at the initial stage as the sexual harassment is still a big concern in public transport here. “People should be familiar with the service and aware of its safety issues before initiating the service in full swing.”
Another urban and transport expert Iqbal Habib said Uber first needs to make members of those who want to use UberPOOL collecting adequate information about every member. “They must have a proper profile of every member. Besides, Uber must train its driver-partners to provide such service ensuring commuters’ security. It’ll have to promise the commuters that it’ll take responsibility if anything bad happens.”
He said the government should not allow Uber or any ridesharing company to operate pool service without formulating guidelines for it. “The government should also examine whether the safety measures taken by Uber is adequate and time-befitting to check untoward incidents. Or else, it’ll be a risky venture which will cause disaster.”
Habib also echoed Nazrul saying mixed ride should not be allowed at the initial stage considering the country’s socio-cultural problems.
Uber launched its service in Bangladesh three years back with many promises to bring about a change in commuting experience, but expert said it still could not ensure international standard service as the company’s main focus is on making money. They also said Uber is failing to ensure quality service as the company has apparently compromised with Dhaka’s bad traffic culture ignoring its brand value and international service standard.
“We expect quality and international-standard services from Uber. Initially, the company’s service was good, but it has gradually deteriorated. We often heard many allegations from the users about the frustrating services of the company, said Prof Nazrul”.
He said most drivers of the company are not trained enough to maintain the quality services while many of them misbehave with riders demonstrating their traditional attitude. The urban expert also said universities and different organisations should conduct research on ridesharing services to help the companies to improve their services with effective suggestions.
