CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
Neelam Kumari
Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
Radio Cabs: How is this public private partnership so
successful and efficient in Delhi?
Submitted to
Centre for Civil Society
By
Neelam Kumari
Centre for Civil Society
1
CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
Neelam Kumari
Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Topic
INTRODUCTION
HISTORY OF RADIO TAXIS
ROLE OF GOVERNMENT
Page Number
3
CONCLUSION
REFERENCES
Centre for Civil Society
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CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
Neelam Kumari
Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
INTRODUCTION
In this era of high mobility and the fast biz world, India being a high paced developing country needs
faster and efficient means of transport. Delhi is the capital and second most populous metropolis of India
and requires reliable sources of commutation. Delhi's high population growth rate, coupled with high
economic growth rate has resulted in an ever increasing demand for transport creating excessive
pressure on the city's existent transport infrastructure. Considering 70 lakh working people in Delhi and
NCR lose nearly 42 crore man-hour every month while commuting from home to office and vice versa
through the public transport [1]. Approximately, half a decade back people were in a dire need of safe
and efficient transport system. Today, Radio Taxi service has solved this problem quite to a laudable
extent and is providing pretty satisfying cab services to the frequent travellers. The herculean task of
reaching the airport is turned out to be just a click away in the radio cab booking website or a call away
by dialing the number.
Radio Cabs in Delhi were launched on Dec 08, 2007. The radio cabs business has emerged as one of the
fastest growing businesses in the Indian transportation sector. It’s booming in a huge way in India with
versatile private operators both national and international investing tremendous money in setting up the
call centers, acquiring fleet of new cars, incorporating latest technologies in their vehicles. The drivers are
provided with the rigorous training to deal with the customers in the best possible way . It has proved to
be the win-win situation to each element of society such as government, radio cab companies, chauffeurs
and the most importantly passengers. Radio Cabs has filled in the gap of missing infrastructure in the
delhi transport system as quoted in [2].
Following is the roster of radio cab companies existing in Delhi:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Mega Cabs
Quick Cabs
Easy Cabs
Delhi Cabs
Meru Cabs
Mango Cabs
Mega Cabs:
Mega Cabs is amongst the one of the oldest Radio Taxi services in India. It was started in Delhi with a
modest fleet of just 81 taxis in 2001. It is the first company to introduce computerized communication &
dispatch systems with GPS (Global Positioning System) based online tracking for licensed Radio Taxis in
India[3]. With its highly efficient and convenient taxi service, it became very successful in few years’
time. Launching history of Mega Cabs is as follows:


Launched in 2001 in Delhi,
Launched a world class service in Chandigarh in May 2006,
1
http://www.igovernment.in/site/traffic-snarl-snaps-42-cr-man-hour-from-delhi-ncr-workers/
Public Transport: Tragedy of commons, yet again !
3
http://www.megacabs.com
2
Centre for Civil Society
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CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
Neelam Kumari




Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
Added a new fleet of 200 cars in Delhi in 2007,
Launched service in Mumbai in April 2008,
Launched service in Mohali in April 2009,
Launched services in Amritsar, Ludhiana and Kolkata in 2009.
Quick Cabs [4]:
Quick Cabs is the largest and the most economic Radio Taxi service in Delhi and NCR. It is the only
company which operates on the international model wherein the driver himself is the owner of the cab.
The drivers get the bigger share of the profit which is the direct incentive for him to maintaining the
condition of his car and meeting the service standards of the company. The operations cost in Delhi,
Faridabad, Gurgaon, Noida, and all parts of National Capital Region is Rs. 10/KM. It operates 1000 Radio
Taxis in Delhi & NCR which comprises of Maruti Eeco(550), Maruti WagonR(250) and Tata Indica(200).
Its’ cabs are equipped with Global Positioning Devices (GPS) to track the vehicles while the travel.
Its providing cost effective and efficient transportation for the employees of companies such as iGate,
iYogi Technical Services Pvt. Ltd, Nagarro Software Services Pvt. Ltd, Polaris Software Services Pvt Ltd,
Sapient Corporation Pvt Ltd, Csav India Group, V Serv Business Solution Pvt Ltd , United Biscuits and
Air India SATS Pvt. Ltd. Cabs can be booked both online and by dialing number. All the Quick Cabs
chauffeur undergo an interview stage and after selection a vivid training and briefing program inorder to
ensure safety of passengers on the officious roads of Delhi.
Easy Cabs5:
“Easy cabs” were launched by CIPL which is a part of Carzonrent in May, 2006. Carzonrent deals with the
Car Rental servicing. CIPL launched Radio Taxi Services in Delhi on 1 st Jan 2007. It setup its operations at
domestic and International Airport Terminals at Delhi through a contract with DIAL in June, 2007 and
operates more than 2500 cars in Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai all fitted with GPS/GPRS.
CIPL has globally lauded taxi dispatch system from its technology partners who have implemented taxi
operations for major operators in Singapore, Dubai, Abu Dabi, Thailand, Malaysia and Europe.
Services Provided by Easy Cabs:



All the bookings are controlled from the central reservation center via all India common number
43434343.
Easy Cabs can be hailed directly from prominent Parking locations all over NCR.
Payment can be made only by cash
Delhi Cabs 6:
Delhi Cabs’ first batch of air-conditioned radio taxi service was flagged of by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit
at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi on June 07, 2007.
4
http://corp.quickcabs.in/about_us.html
http://www.easycabs.com/about-us.aspx
6
http://web.archive.org/web/20070607192435/http://radiotaxi.in/
5
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CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
Neelam Kumari
Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
The Delhi Cab has been launched by Orix Auto Infrastructure Services Limited (OAIS), a joint venture
between Orix Corporation, Japan, and Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Limited (IL&FS).
Tata Motors is providing the fleet of vehicles. The round-the-clock cab services can be availed by dialing
44333222, a nationwide local phone number.
Meru Cabs7:
Meru Cabs headquartered in Mumbai, is one of the early companies to launch the metered Radio Taxi
service in India under its brand name “ Meru“ in Mumbai on April 2007. It has grown exponentially in
terms of fleet size and geographical presence. It provides 24/7 service via the nationalized number
44224422. The enablement of GPS/GPRS technology in all its cab ensures complete passenger security.
Each Meru Cab is owned and maintained by “Meru Cab Company Private Limited”. It is third largest
“Radio Taxi” company in the world and the largest operator in all the cities of India where it operates. It
makes more than a 20,000 trips per day and serves more than a million passengers per month.
Growth history of Meru Cabs is as follows8:

Meru Cabs was launched in Mumbai with 45 cabs in 2007 and expanded to three other cities
(Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore) in 2008. It is scaled to a fleet of 5,000+ cabs in the period of
three years, across Mumbai (1800), Delhi (1200), Hyderabad (800) and Bengaluru (1200).

It’s one of the few transportation companies in the world to deploy an Oracle ERP, Siebel CRM
and an Aspect IVR.

It’s the only taxi operator in India to partner with the airports at Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad &
Bengaluru

It’s the only company in India to have won the 'Best IT User Awards' by NASSCOM CNBC TV-18
in 2008, 2009 & 2010
Services provided by Meru:

Meru Cabs can be hailed on road as well without a pre-booking, if the taxi top is glowing red it
indicates it’s reserved and if it’s glowing white, then the taxi is ready to serve you.

There is a 'Convenience Charge' for booking a Meru if it’s booked through a call center by dialing
44224422. This convenience charge is currently applicable in Delhi, Hyderabad and Bengaluru
only. But, if the cab is booked through the website, no convenience charges are applicable.
For a pick up within next 35 minutes of the passenger’s call an additional charge of Rs. 40/- is
applicable in Delhi. For any other booking within 24 hours, a charge of Rs. 60/- per booking is
applicable. This charge is charged in addition to the face charge and will get added automatically
in the bill whereas this charge is NOT added in case of the Web booking.
This charge is added because Call Center booking is a dedicated service offered to Meru
customers. The call center helps arrange for the cabs inspite of the cab being distance away and
hence there are costs and resources used for such a service.
7
8
http://www.merucabs.com/about-us/
http://www.merucabs.com/customer-support/faqs.php
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CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
Neelam Kumari
Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
There are no convenience charges to check the booking status, to cancel/modify a booking, to give
feedback or any enquiry call.

The passenger pays the 'Toll charge', when he is crossing the toll post while traveling through
Meru, but doesn’t have to pay the toll charge while the booked Meru cab is coming to pick up the
passenger.

Payment for the cab service- The chauffeur can be paid in cash or by debit/credit card
(VISA/Master Card/AMEX) as per the fare on the meter with any extra charges such as waiting
charges or night surcharges and the printed receipt of the same is given to the passenger.

All the fare collected by the Meru Cab is tracked at the Technology Center and unmetered fare is
highly dissuaded. An un-metered fare is in violation of the Department of Transport rules and
exposes the chauffeur to the penal action. Therefore, the printed receipt helps if there is any
complaint against the chauffeur.

Missing items can be linked with the passenger by calling Customer Service Center at 4422 4422
and providing the details of the cab number, date and time of travel to track down the missing

item.
Cabs are provided as per the availability and hence it’s not a guaranteed service.
Mango Cabs: High traffic density of Delhi is turning in to chaos on roads. Driving is becoming tedious
day by day. Parking is a very big issue , it is practically impossible to find a decent parking place in Delhi.
Mango Cabs provide economical chauffeur driven cabs.
Mango Cabs offers Airport/Railway Services and Delhi NCR pick and drop transportation.
HISTORY OF RADIO TAXIS:
State Tourism Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely announced on August 29, 2006 that the Delhi Tourism and
Transportation Development Corporation would introduce a radio taxi system to promote tourist activities
and improve transport facilities for national and international tourists. A brand new air-conditioned radio
taxi service was launched on December 8, 2006 giving the people a viable option to avail service
“anywhere and anytime” round the clock on the roads at Rs. 15/km.
Carzonrent India Private Limited, the sole licensee for Hertz International in the country, launched its
radio taxi service in Delhi on December 28, 2006. With 250 radio taxis equipped with state-of-the-art
technology, "EasyCabs" was the largest city taxi service in the Capital9. This was acclaimed as the step
towards the reliable transport system by Delhi Transport Minister Haroon Yusuf.
9
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-newdelhi/article3040347.ece
Centre for Civil Society
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CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
Neelam Kumari
Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
ROLE OF GOVERNMENT IN RADIO CAB MARKET
RADIO TAXI SCHEME-200610
Terms and Conditions of Radio Taxi Scheme are as follows:
Grants of permits to prospective operators of radio taxi networks are considered under section 74 and
other provisions of Motor Vehicle Act, 1988.
I.
A person interested in starting a radio cab company should have following profile:
1. The Licensee has to be either a company under Companies Act, 1956 or a society under
the Societies Registration Act, 1860.
2. The Licensee has to be financially sound in order to run and manage the radio taxi
operation in Delhi.
3. The licensee must have experience and intimate knowledge of transport business
preferably in the running of motor cabs.
All the matters related to registration, issue/cancellation of permits, inspection and issue of
certificate of fitness in respect of radio taxis are administered in Auto Rickshaw Unit, Burari11.
II.
Operational Infrastructure
1. The licensee must demonstrate possession of adequate parking space for all taxies and
office space (minimum of 1000 sq. ft.) for accommodating the control room with radio
communication and ten telephone lines.
2. Necessary infrastructure for maintenance of the vehicle should be available.
III.
Fleet Size For Licensees
1. The minimum fleet size per license would be 500 (Five hundred) motor cabs, which has
to be achieved by the licensee within one year of the commencement of the operation.
IV.
Vehicle Profile
1. Every motor cab has to be brand new at the time of induction.
2. The motor cab should be driven on clean fuel.
3. The vehicle should be of engine capacity of 999CC or above, JEEP type vehicle like
Gypsy etc. is prohibited must be equipped with temperature control devises such as air
conditioning and heating and maintained in proper working order at all times.
4. The vehicle must be equipped with temperature control devises such as air conditioning
and heating and maintained in proper working order at all times.
5. The motor cab should be fitted with electronic fare meters on the front panel(dashboard)
and maintained in a proper working order.
10
11
Transport Department, Govt. of NCT of Delhi-Radio Taxi Scheme, 2006
Citizens Charter (May 2009), Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Transport Department
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CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
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Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
6. On the roof of the vehicle there should be an LCD board to display that the vehicle is a
radio taxi; the dimensions of the LCD display panel must conform to those prescribed by
the State Transport Authority from time to time.
7. The vehicle is allowed to carry advertisement in such a manner and to the extent that it
doesn’t become hazardous or disturbance to the safe traffic and shall be strictly in
accordance with the guidelines issued by the STA in this regard from time to time.
8. The vehicle must be fitted with GPS/GPRS based tracking devises which must be in
constant communication with the Central Control unit while the vehicles are on duty.
9. The vehicle must be equipped with a mobile radio fitted in the front panel for
communication between driver and the main control room of the licensee.
10. The vehicle must be equipped with the first aid box containing material to be specified in
DMV rules 1993.
11. The vehicle should be replaced on completion of eight years with a brand new vehicles
meeting the prevailing emission standard.
12. Photograph of driver, license particulars of driver and details of the licensee will have to
be displayed on the dashboard of the vehicle.
13. The vehicle approved for commercial taxis like Ford Ikon, Opel Astra, Mitshubishi Lancer,
Fiat Palio etc shall also be allowed to be registered as radio taxi, provided, they are fitted
with appropriate CNG kits by approved retrofitters.
14. The color scheme of the radio taxi is white with different color strip of one foot on both
of the panels of the car differentiating each licensee.
15. Licensees of radio taxis, on request, will be considered for grant of Inter State Permit
under the relevant provision of Motor Vehicle Act, 1988 up to 100% of their fleet only for
the National Capital Region.
16. Transport help line number should be prominently displayed inside and outside of motor
cab as prescribed.
V.
WORKING CONDITIONS
The licensee must adhere to the provisions of Motor Vehicle Act, 1988 and the terms and
conditions prescribed by the transport department from time to time. Working hours of
drivers is to be limited in accordance to the Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961.
VI.
DRIVER PROFILE
1. The driver must have a driving license of the appropriate category for at least five years
issued by an authority in the NCT of Delhi
2. The driver should at least be a matriculate (namely, passed board examination of 10th or
equivalent).
[To be added more]
REFERENCES
1. Sample
data
set
of
working
people
in
Delhi
NCR.
Available
from:
http://www.igovernment.in/site/traffic-snarl-snaps-42-cr-man-hour-from-delhi-ncr-workers/
[Accessed: June 2012]
2. (Nimit Kathuria,2004) Public Transport: Tragedy of commons, yet again! [Accessed: 28,June
2012]
Centre for Civil Society
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CCS Researching Reality Internship 2012
Neelam Kumari
Radio Cabs’ Market in Delhi
3. Mega Cabs information from official site. Available from: http://www.megacabs.com
[Accessed: June 2012]
4. Delhi
Cabs
launch
and
inception
information.
Available
from:
http://web.archive.org/web/20070607192435/http://radiotaxi.in/ [Accessed: June 2012]
5. Meru Cab, information. Available from: http://www.merucabs.com/about-us/ [Accessed: June
2012]
6. Launch of first Radio Taxi Service in Delhi. Available from: http://www.thehindu.com/todayspaper/tp-national/tp-newdelhi/article3040347.ece [Accessed: June 2012]
7.
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