Now, share a taxi, auto ride using an app

The Android-based cellphone application m-Indicator has introduced a new feature that will help users share a taxi or autorickshaw using the app. The creators on Friday introduced a new feature that provides users the location of other commuters in the vicinity who want to share a ride to the same destination.

Speaking to The Asian Age, one of the application creators, Abhijit Patil said, “Many of us have been in a situation when there are more people than the available taxis or autorickshaws. This is when you want to ask the person waiting along with you whether they would want to share the ride, but there is some awkwardness and you don’t know how to go about it. The new feature takes away this predicament and allows you to see if there is another user who is at the same place and wants to go in the same direction as you,” said Mr Patil.

The feature went live on Friday midnight and commuters can simply update the application via PlayStore and make use of the feature. “We think our application is a good platform to provide this facility because most of the train commuters get off at stations and take the autorickshaw or taxi home. Not only this, the app also gives you the phone number and the name of the commuter who might be going to the same destination, so it’s a bit more secure than sharing a ride with a random commuter,” he added.

m-Indicator is one of the heavily used apps for public commute and has over 50 lakh downloads. It was initially launched with the basic information like the time-tables of both Central and Western Railway and was deemed useful by commuters as more than 75 lakh commuters use the railways in the city.