The shortage of Ola and Uber rides has struck cities like Mumbai and Bengaluru hard. Many also took to social media to express their disappointment.

The reason for this abrupt shortage is the unrest among the drivers due to the incentives being not so great anymore.

Uber Ola Drivers Quit: Incentives Go Down From 59% to 8%

Redseer, a leading management consulting company revealed that about three years ago the incentives provided to the drivers of the cab service companies were 59% of the gross booking value which has now sunk to 8% which has drawn the drivers away from the companies.

Some of the drivers who bought their own cars by loaning money found It extremely difficult to pay off the loan. From an average of 1 million ride a day in 2016 the average went up to 2 million in 2019 regardless of which the drivers continued facing the difficulty of paying off the debt which made them shift to other professions with steady incomes.

18000 Cars Of Drivers With Loans Seized: Reason Behind Shortage of Ola and Uber Drivers

Tanveer Pasha, head of the Ola Uber Driver Association in Bengaluru revealed that as many as 18000 cars were seized in the last one year which is one of the reasons behind the shortage of rides in the Mumbai and Bengaluru. The cars were seized due to the driver’s failure to repay the loans. 

A driver going through similar hardships said, “incentives are nowhere close to the amount earned three years back”. “Now I have lenders on my head all the time. I do not wish to continue, but I am stuck.”

Drivers Making Their Own Deals With Passengers

In order to make more money and avoid paying a part of their earning per ride to the company, drivers are now seen striking deals with the customers.

Drivers cancel the ride which updates the status on the app to canceled but later approach the passenger and ask them to ride with them offline paying the same amount.

The above has been vastly observed in Delhi and Noida.

An Ola bike driver in Noida asked his customer to cancel the ride and instead pay him the full amount. He explained, “In a bike ride worth Rs 20, the company is taking as much as Rs 7… what am I supposed to earn?”

Drivers quitting the company is not just bad for the business for the cab service providers but also for the thousands who depend on them for their commute.