Why are riders accepting trips and not showing up?
Many riders now accept the call on the app but do not show up, effectively blocking the user from accessing another rider who might be interested in a trip on the app. Eventually, the commuter is forced to avail the trip on ‘khep’
There was a time when Dhaka commuters had to argue with auto-rickshaw drivers about accepting metered fares. Now, commuters do not even bother with it, knowing it's now a long-gone provision. Even the police have stopped checking if an autorickshaw is complying with the regulation.
Ride-sharing services of private companies such as Pathao and Uber seem to be heading in the same direction. The increasing number of users of ride-sharing apps are experiencing what seems to be a planned disruption of the digital platform. Many riders now accept the call on the app but do not show up, effectively blocking the user from accessing another rider who might be interested in a trip on the app. Eventually, the commuter is forced to renegotiate the trip with the driver to travel offgrid, or walk down to a street corner to avail another vehicle on 'khep'.
Users across platforms are facing this problem.
"A few months back, I requested a ride on Pathao bike service. A rider accepted it but did not call me, which they conventionally do, to confirm the ride. So I called him, but it turned out he was not willing to do the ride," said Ashikur Rahman, a regular Pathao user from Mirpur.
"At first, it seemed to be an isolated event, but now I think it's not. I face similar incidents every now and then. The other day, a rider accepted the call on the app but did not call me. Then I noticed on the map, his bike was moving away from me," Ashik said.
Now, the problem is, if a user has to cancel the ride, s/he may be fined by the app for doing so.
Uber car users also shared similar stories with The Business Standard.
Many riders are only interested in what is called a 'khep,' meaning a verbal contract with the commuter. This allows them to avoid paying the platform, while they can bargain with the passenger for a higher fare.
Kheps are so common that Pathao even ran advertisements to discourage and demean khep ride users. But the new situation seems to be an addition to the already bad situation. These riders appear to be targeting the apps themselves, so users are forced to commute on informal contracts.
Riders disrupting the system did not give any explanation. When asked why they accepted the call on the app while unwilling to take the trip, some simply said they wouldn't go in that direction. More than one rider angrily reacted and abruptly ended the call.
On the other hand, riders still complying with the system said the disruption affected their chances of getting a passenger.
Pathao and Uber authorities said they continuously work on tackling this issue.
"Offline trips, whether originating through street-hailing or through initiating a request in the app but subsequently cancelling the request and completing the ride offline, can put the safety of riders and users at significant risk," Fahim Ahmed, managing director and CEO of Pathao told The Business Standard.
"Pathao's advanced data analytics capabilities can detect suspicious or fraudulent activities on the platform, including cancellation with the intent of completing the ride offline. We take corrective measures against such activities, which include warnings and suspensions," Fahim added.
In a similar vein, Uber said they strongly discourage off-platform trips as these have no accountability or safety support for either riders or drivers.
"Trips taken offline are not on GPS, and, therefore, cannot be tracked. Riders and drivers in an offline trip don't have access to any safety feature hosted in the Uber app or access to the safety support team of Uber," said the Uber spokesperson in a written statement given in response to TBS' queries.
"Also, riders do not have visibility to the driver's identity [name, picture, rating, etc.] at the time of booking. Should the rider feel the need to report the trip to the police, they wouldn't have access to basic information like the driver's name and his picture.
Another disadvantage of street hail is the lack of any insurance coverage for either drivers or riders, should they find themselves in the midst of an unfortunate situation," the statement read.
