Ola integrates its 'Emergency Button' with Bengaluru Police Control room

This will enable seamless sharing of ride-information, including driver and car details, GPS coordinates of the vehicle, and customer's contact information

Ride-hailing firm Ola on Thursday said that it has integrated its in-app emergency button with the Bengaluru City Police control room. This integration will enable seamless sharing of ride-information, including driver and car details, GPS (global positioning system) coordinates of the vehicle, and customer’s contact information. This development further strengthens Ola’s commitment to foster safer mobility through collaboration with local authorities.

As part of this technology integration, whenever a customer presses the ‘emergency button’, he will have the option to call the police directly on 100. Once this is activated, the police will have real-time access to the customer’s ride information and the vehicle’s GPS coordinates, enabling quicker response and on-ground support from the nearest police team. Additionally, Ola’s Safety Response Team (SRT) will also immediately contact the customer and provide on-phone assistance until the customer’s safety is confirmed. This technology integration will better equip the police to provide quick real-time on-ground support.

“With shared cab services being a popular mode of transport in the city, Bengaluru City Police now offers great convenience and ensures the citizens of Bengaluru a secure ride-hailing experience by integrating Suraksha app with Ola application,” said Bhaskar Rao, Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru City. “It is a great initiative taken by Bengaluru City Police for the safety of citizens travelling in public cabs. The travellers can now reach for police help by simply pressing the Emergency Button provided in the Ola application,” he added.

Having forged a similar association with Hyderabad City Police, Ola is also exploring partnerships with law enforcement authorities across the country. This collaboration also complements Ola’s host of measures to strengthen ride safety for the larger ecosystem. This includes industry-first practices such as the one-time-pin (OTP) feature and Ola Guardian, its flagship real-time customer ride monitoring system.

“As India’s largest mobility platform, safety is a key priority for us and we believe in leveraging technology to provide our customers with a secure and comfortable mobility experience,” said Arun Srinivas, COO at Ola. “We are grateful to the Bengaluru Police City police for collaborating with us and supporting our cause to enable safer rides.”

Ola recently expanded its AI-based safety feature to 45 cities and towns across India, Australia and the UK. The 'Guardian' feature uses real-time data from rides to automatically detect irregular trip activity, including prolonged stops and unexpected route deviations. These alerts are flagged off in real-time to Ola's 24x7 SRT that immediately reach out to customers and drivers to confirm if they’re safe and offer on-the-call assistance until ride completion.