Meru Cabs comes to Kolkata

Plans to garner major share of revenue from the city which has been crippled by frequent transport strikes

Meru Cabs today launched its MeruFlexi service in Kolkata, 20 days after Uber had arrived in the city. With a fleet strength of 100 and a base fare of Rs 150 , and facilities of inter-city transport, Meru plans to garner a major share of revenue from the city which has been crippled by frequent transport strikes. Speaking to reporters after the launch, Sidhhartha Phawa, CEO, Meru Cabs said that Meru is the leader in this industry, which was highly organised.

“Only 5 percentage of the passenger car industry is organised and according to our survey, Meru has a share of 50 per cent in every city where we are present,” Phawa told reporters speaking after the event. He also said that Meru aims to garner 60-70 per cent market share within the next five years.

The Mumbai-based radio taxi company is present in 11 cities across the country and plans to expand to about 20 cities by 2015. According to Phawa, the radio cab service company which has over 10,000 cabs on road also aims to improve its estimated time of arrival (ETA) which is at 35 minutes at present.

“As we keep on adding to our fleet, the ETA will automatically improve,” he said. “We cater to the class who expect a certain standard of quality and customer acceptability and we have incorporated technology along with driver etiquette to provide that,” he added.

Meru’s mobile app is available on Android, iOs, Windows and Blackberry enables customers to make a booking, offer credit card payment facility and automated e-bill at the end of the trip. While the services of Uber can only be availed by credit card payment through its smartphone app, Meru Cabs can also be booked by through its call center and also offers the facility of cash payment. When asked about the recent case of vilation of FEMA guidelines, Phawa curtly replied, “Our payment facility follows all RBI norms.” Meru Cabs had registered revenues of Rs 450 crore in financial year 2013-14.