More than 21,000 taxis are set to benefit from a ground-breaking and Uber-like technology developed by a Melbourne-based company.
A new product called CabFare will provide an ‘Uber-like’ digital experience for Australia’s taxis, with added safety and privacy features for passengers.
Arthur Argyropoulos, CEO of Parousia Investments, which is behind the new project, said the taxi industry had failed to address the safety and privacy standards expected by the general public.
“CabFare will help taxis better manage the safety gap perceived by Australians,” Mr Argyropoulos said.
Argyropoulos’ company asked 1,200 people whether they feel safe when travelling in a taxi. While 79 per cent said that they do feel safe when travelling during the day, only 54 per cent did when travelling alone at night.
More than one-third of Australians said safety was the most important factor when catching a taxi at night and only 28 per cent said that cost was most important.
Women feel particularly vulnerable, with more than one in three saying they do not feel safe travelling alone at night. Almost three in four Australians (71 per cent) said they would feel safer if they had a digital copy of the driver and vehicle details. And there is where CabFare will focus.
“With CabFare, passengers will automatically receive the taxi driver’s identity when entering the vehicle, track their journey online and pass on their journey details to friends or family via social media. Passengers will also have the option to pay anonymously through the CabFare app,” Mr Argyropoulos said.
Argyropoulos assured that unlike Uber, with CabFare, the passenger’s personal and credit card details will never be shared with the taxi driver, the taxi company or his company Parousia.
CabFare will be free for both taxi drivers and passengers. It is currently in field trial and will be available from late 2016.