While the app-based cab drivers are agitating for getting low fares, the customers have their own side of the story – Why do the cab drivers always keep the air-conditioner (AC) switched off during the ride? Expressing disappointment over the poor services, Raja Sanodiya, a regular cab user, said, “I travel by cab almost every day, and often the drivers refuse to turn on the air conditioner. Apart from this, the passengers have to compromise on other fronts because of poor maintenance of the vehicle.

 

However, the passengers do not have any direct way to bring this lack of facilities to the notice of the companies,” he said, adding that there is no call support for ride-related concerns. Sanodiya highlighted that when he contacted the safety helpline during a ride, the executive told him that the helpline wasn’t meant for service complaints. Echoing a similar experience, another commuter, Gauri Deshmukh, said her cab driver, too, did not switch on the AC even after repeated requests.

 

“On the other hand, the driver arrogantly asked me to step out of the car,” said Gauri. The embarrassed passenger did not avail herself of the taxi service yet had to pay the fare online. These online cab booking applications have only one option to complain about the AC, and that is the chatbots, which just sends the notification of complaints received, but there is no way of getting the concession for not providing the facility of an air conditioner. On the other hand, the traditional auto-rickshaws, who do not provide AC, charge considerably less than that of app-based cabs. Trade experts said that the drivers intentionally switch off the ACs in a bid to save fuel. “As they are getting less commission, the drivers leave no stone unturned to save their expenses,” they observed. Several other customers, who also voiced their frustration over the deteriorating services in the cabs, said they lodged complaints against the drivers but to no avail.