Book without hassles: Uber, Ola to get parking stands at Delhi rail station

Are you tired of circling around railway stations with your heavy suitcases looking around frantically the Ola or Uber you booked? Indian Railways has now come to your rescue as they will soon allot dedicated parking stands for app-based cabs within the station premises for a seamless customer experience.

To increase its non-fare earning, Railways have marked 10 spots at 14 stations, including New Delhi, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Delhi Main and Delhi Sarai Rohilla, The Hindu reported. Divisional Railway Manager Arun Arora said that Railways anticipate earning 15 crore per annum through this move.

A passenger would be required to enter the date and destination and either pay through a debit or a credit card in advance or in cash at the time of the journey. Once the booking is confirmed, a taxi booking number would be generated and sent to the passenger's phone through an SMS. The passenger can then go to the parking lot and board his/her cab.

Faced with slow growth in passenger and freight sector, the Railways is looking to expand its revenue sources and efficient utilisation of parking lots is one of them. 

Earning Rs 122 crore every year from parking spaces across the country, the Railways hopes to earn an additional Rs 200 crore from this movie, NDTV reported.

In the long run, the Railways plan to expand the parking space facility to 500 major stations, eyeing an annual profit of Rs 300 crore. The move will be followed by setting up of kiosks near major stations, the report added. 

Earlier this year Ola signed a similar memorandum of understanding with the Kempegowda International Airport and Bengaluru City Junction Railway Station for a designated ‘Ola Zone.’

As free Google Wi-Fi services are already available in approximately 7-8 stations in Delhi for commuters, the government plans to add hot spot devices as well for Infotainment. While Hazrat Nizamuddin Station at Ghaziabad will be the first to get the hot spot service, it will be provided at other stations in a phased manner.