Tag: Bike taxis

The network of electric scooters by Vogo rentals has successfully spread to the city of Thane, thereby going beyond the Mumbai Suburban district. The fleet has crossed around 1,130 so far while more scooters will be added as time passes. At the Economic Times Urban Mobility Summit, Shri Lokesh Chandra (General Manager of BEST) shared the aim of taking the fleet of e-bikes to 5,000 on one hand, while the BEST undertaking is gearing up to add 3,000 electric buses on other hand. As mentioned in the earlier article regarding Vogo rides, it was too early to judge a recently introduced service. For first impressions, you can read the article here.

After two months of usage, it is time to put forth an updated review highlighting both the pros and cons. We will cover it section-wise, below.

Speed and Pricing

When started, Vogo electric scooters were charging ₹2 per minute with vehicles touching a maximum speed of 25 km/hr. In December 2022, the prices were increased to ₹2.5 per minute for up to 30 minutes and ₹3 per minute after the first 30 minutes. The speed was locked at 20km/hr while some vehicles did not even exceed 15km/hr. The reason behind highlighting this is, a user is charged ₹2.5 per minute and driving at a low speed takes more time to cover a specific distance which costs additional charges at the end. This issue has been merely acknowledged by Vogo but appropriate action has not been taken to this day. The newly acquired scooters too are restricted to 20km/hr.

In a conversation with their support executive, the clarification behind the increase in fares was explained as “a step taken considering the market prices and several other factors which cannot be disclosed on a phone call.”  A solution to this, “if the prices can’t be reduced, then at least make sure that max speed is kept up to 25km/hr” was taken as feedback to be escalated to the respective department.

Maintenance

A scooter should have three components to be checked while commencing a ride – accelerator, brakes, and the horn. Acceleration up to 25km/hr is necessary since the scooters cannot go beyond their limit. Brakes are necessary to avoid collision and a horn is necessary to drive through busy streets. Since the scooters are parked on side of the road, they are vulnerable to accumulating dust and get dirty due to birds defecating from above. Further, driving a scooter will end up with wear and tear after some time even if driven with care. In this case, proper maintenance is the only way to keep vehicles safe to be driven again. After every ride, phone calls from customer support started becoming irritative when I realised, they did not read the feedback explaining the low rating being given. The reported scooters are unattended for days, causing a safety threat to future users. The funny part is the batteries are changed regularly, but certain scooters are not checked to ensure their roadworthiness.

To help recover the abandoned scooters, Vogo started a Bounty Hunter contest where consumers win credit points that can be redeemed for Vogo rides in the future. For getting points, one needs to search for the missing scooter within 200 metres of the given location on the map. I searched four locations but did not find a single missing scooter.

Refund

I never thought this part would have to be covered in a separate section considering the flawless service by Vogo at the beginning. After having an issue when the ride exceeds the time limit for cancellation, one was able to end the ride and apply for a refund. But in the recent few weeks, even demanding a refund for the same issue has turned out to be a pain. It seems like the team is dependent on phone calls which cannot be an ideal way of communication since a user may not necessarily be available to speak once the ride is over. Customer Care contact for users could have been a solution to establish better communication but the firm does exactly the opposite. Only Vogo’s team being able to call its customers is the root cause behind breakdowns not getting properly attended. A scooter with flat tyre does not come to one’s notice until they are driven on road. However, by the time you hit the road and notice that it is necessary to dock this vehicle back to where it was taken, the timer goes on charging you ₹2.5 per minute. Sometimes, things do get escalated into an argument with the firm to initiate a payment. I have personally come across other consumers schooling Customer Support.

Conclusion

Vogo started as the cheapest electric scooter service in Mumbai, but things started going south when tonnes of feedback ended up on the phone calls and didn’t show any improvement in the service. Every feedback ends with Customer Support apologising for the inconvenience caused, but their apology is of no use if the service is not improved at all. What I have observed at the ground level is two guys on personal bikes, swapping the batteries of every possible electric scooter daily and explaining to everyone how to use the service. The ground staff seems stressed out while working in the heat which decreases their interest in work.

Since Vogo has expanded its network to Thane, the expectations are still high and they haven’t sorted out the earlier issue of delivering value for money. India is a price-competitive market where consumers prefer saving money along with getting services that justify their costs. The electric scooters cost more than a bus ticket but less than an auto rickshaw (that charges by the fare meter). If anybody from Vogo is reading this, please pay a visit to the stations and look at the condition of all the parked e-scooters. The educated class in metropolitan cities is well aware of how to handle new technology. Poor infrastructure for parking makes these vehicles look as if they were stuffed into random places. With new vehicles joining the fleet, Vogo can push its network beyond the limits of Thane City but before attracting new customers, the firm should focus on maintaining its existing ones.

A call for help from BEST bus passengers

It is equally the responsibility of BEST to either keep Vogo operational or stop it. Since these scooters now carry the logo of Mumbai’s public transporter, poor service will spoil the image of both Vogo and BEST altogether. The bus fleet expansion is a concern where BEST needs to act as soon as possible since 2023 is the year when more Tata CNG Buses along with the Bharat Stage 3 double-decker buses would reach end of life, without having an adequate volume of replacement available at this moment. The dwindling bus fleet is affecting the frequency and can be only dealt with by procuring more brand-new Buses to keep the service running. A fare hike in the future can be done by adding more fare slabs of 5 kilometre each, beyond the maximum fare of ₹20 and ₹25, up to maximum fares of ₹40 & ₹50. Prices of the daily pass can be increased by ₹10. This can help passengers use the bus service and assure BEST Undertaking that routes are not running at a loss due to lower fares for long distances.

Note: This article is aimed to throw light on the ground reality in Mumbai Metropolitan Region and does not intend to spread any kind of hate about any organisation. Every citizen deserves to get better Public Transport and we at BESTpedia are committed to reporting both sides of a coin.

Have you used a Vogo to get to a BEST bus? Do tell us your experience in the comments section.

Also Read:

Solution Or Diversion? A Review Of Vogo E-Scooters In Mumbai

I took a Rapido to work today, and now I want the government to legalize bike taxis

Featured Image: Vogo E-Scooters parked near Duncan Company, Mulund West (Gandharva Purohit for BESTpedia)

Well, this might be too early to judge a product that has been newly introduced but I am concluding this after testing it for two weeks. Frequent interactions through time-to-time feedback and testing all the components from speed to brakes and acceleration, this is an in-depth review of my experience with Vogo in Mumbai.

The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport (BEST) Undertaking introduced electric scooters, aiming to provide last mile connectivity to passengers from bus stops to their homes. The service is provided by Vogo, a Bengaluru-based start-up running rental services through their App. Services was introduced in Andheri at first and slowly reached Mulund by November.

Overview

The tariff for renting an E-Scooter was earlier set as ₹3 per km, but later changed to ₹2 per minute. The app gives you around a minute or two to cancel the ride in the beginning but if in case you fail to do so, you are charged with the basic fare of ₹2. Now the catch is, if you are stuck in traffic or at a signal for a long time, the timer goes on ticking & ₹2 per minute continues to be charged in your fare (just like the waiting charge of an auto rickshaw would go). The scooters in use are White Carbon O3 – manufactured by Gandhinagar-based White Carbon Motors – that have the capacity to run up to 45 kilometre on a full charge. The top speed of this scooter is 25 km/hr which exempts riders from needing driving licence as per laws set for driving electric two wheelers in India. However, when it comes to handling it, one should have an experience of driving two-wheelers (which I do) to operate this vehicle. The acceleration and braking is good and the most importantly – the scooter comes with a loud horn – quite an essential element to drive on city roads.

While I was initially unsure whether the batteries are swappable or not – they are, the scooter has a charging port right below the seat. Talking of the seat, it can only accommodate the driver, while there is a grab handle behind. Other variants of this vehicle come up with a carrier or a boot at the rear. The vehicle has keyless entry and gets locked/unlocked through the mobile app. One needs to ensure that both Bluetooth and mobile data are active when using the app.

TOOK ELECTRIC SCOOTER FOR A RIDE
Clocks top speed of 25kmph. Shock absorbers are the Best.
There's scope for improvement in the Mobile App @Vogo_rentals since payment took more time than expected. Also, please install a Station @ CheckNaka (East) & Mulund Rly Stn East. pic.twitter.com/eLQn6B6Xau

— GP (@gp30543) November 2, 2022

Payments can be made by linking either an Ola money wallet, Amazon Pay or PayTM (which didn’t link successfully in my case) or paying a ₹100 refundable deposit in order to use other modes of digital payment like Net Banking, Credit or Debit Cards, or UPI. As of now, there is no tariff plan for a monthly or quarterly basis (a subscription plan), but I did suggest that they introduce one in the feedback. A recent chat with one of their ground staff ended with an update with Vogo switching to old fare chart of ₹3 per kilometre for near future.

Operations

As per sources, the service centre for these scooters is located at Vikhroli which takes care of the electric scooters in the region from Ghatkopar to Mulund. The company has a tie-up with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) that gives them freedom to operate and park within the city. The app comes with a specific section for raising a refund request in case a challan is issued or the user has paid for the breakdown repair. In this case, the customer support executive is available on chat. Raising a grievance does take time since the mobile app is a bit complicated while finding the reasons to file a grievance. If you have an active ride at the moment of complaint, get ready to pay for the time that you wait. While ending the ride, the app asks to upload a picture of the landmark where vehicle is parked. While clicking the picture and uploading, it takes another minute wherein the user is charged an additional ₹2.

My experience after using the product-service

For the last two weeks, I have tested this product to its full potential just like how it tested my patience (more on that, later). The first ride was as smooth as butter, but it took time for me to finish the payment. One ride turned out to be tragic when the scooter I unlocked, was stolen by someone else. I was charged for the ride despite not driving the vehicle, for which raising a refund request took a week. Another tragic incident happened when I locked a scooter for some work and later on, it refused to unlock. I wasted a nice 20 minutes just trying to start the scooter but had to report a breakdown in the end. Luckily a refund was initiated quickly once the issue was brought to their notice.

My first ride started from a main road and went through the busy and narrow market road near the railway station. Traffic and pedestrians were the biggest obstacles here but thanks to the quick braking, I did not end up hitting any of them. The next ride, I took it across a rail-over-bridge, testing its ability to climb gradients. While I was earlier driving at 25 km/hr, the speed did not come down below 20km/hr while climbing. Taking the difficulty to next level, I did test it on a highway. Unfortunately, the scooter I was riding was locked to 20km/hr, so it was a boring ride. That day, I started from Tata Colony, Mulund for Nahur Railway Station, a route that has a two-minute-long signal at Bhandup Pumping Centre on its way. The wait at the traffic signal was the worst part since it added more to the fare and a speed lower than expected took more time to reach my destination, again charging me more. Throughout the ride, I stuck to the service road to stay away from high-speed traffic movement on Eastern Express Highway. The low speed does not fit on big roads. The last time I drove on the Eastern Express Highway was an electric bicycle in Thane operated by Coo Rides. The bicycle too had a speed limit of 25kmph (although majority of their bicycles are locked to 15 km/hr), it was the best riding experience since I drove through Majiwada traffic, Teen Hath Naka Flyover and the Kopri Rail Over Bridge. I did not get the same experience over here since the scooter was lagging in terms of speed.

Refund Speed

No matter how many flaws we may find in the operations, the process of initiating refund is quicker than expected. It is said that the money will be refunded in 5-7 business days, but it actually gets refunded in 5-7 minutes. The said incidents when I had raised a refund request and the day amount was debited from my account twice, while paying for deposit. In both the cases, my money was credited back the same day I had reported the problem.

Mishandling

SEEMS SOMEONE HAD AN ACCIDENT@Vogo_rentals one of the scooters is lying broken near Mulund Railway Station East Bus Stop (opposite Hotel Prashant). BLR001×× Number was not visible.
Please get it attended on time. pic.twitter.com/eZ84IbpKHV

— GP (@gp30543) November 8, 2022

Whenever there is a use, there is a misuse as well. For any app-based rental services in the city, users should be equally aware of how to use it. In the past two weeks, majority of the users seen in Mulund are the slum boys who take these scooters for a ride and end up breaking the hooks that are supposed to be used to hold your belongings. To make things worse, some scooters have the grips missing on their grab handles, some have broken wirings that connect to the accelerator, some scooters have their horns dimmed (some don’t even have them working), while some scooters have only one brake functioning. Each and every fault cannot be blamed to the users since the operator too should take care of servicing these vehicles from time to time. After every ride, the app asks for a rating and every single star rating is followed by a phone call from their customer support executive. The customer support is open to feedback that are well-explained, but action needs to be taken before it is too late.

Conclusion

The experience using Vogo E-Scooters has created a neutral opinion at end of the day. The product is very handy that it can be used regularly but sometimes it equally irritates you into wanting to uninstall it forever. First things first, the Vogo stations need to be set up in between two bus stops where the distance is more in order to walk. If used correctly, Vogo rides are the best medium since it is slower then buses but faster than going anywhere on foot. The last mile connectivity promised by BEST is only possible if Vogo has a strong network in the city where after every second lane, a station is made available to lower the time taken for walking from the bus stop to the doorstep. The fare chart needs to be revised according to distance once again since the timer can result in riders driving fast and dangerous and could end up in an accident. The rate can be charged as ₹1 per 500 metres so that ₹2 per kilometre would prove a value for money. Or else ₹1.5 per 500 metre too is possible since payment anyway happens digitally. Monthly, quarterly and half yearly subscription plans with a limit of 5 kilometres can be rolled out so that people can use the scooters on a regular basis without worrying about making a payment after every ride.

The next suggestion is regarding BEST buses, which brings us to the title. The Undertaking should take the fleet expansion seriously and bring more buses within a year as time is ticking for the ones aged beyond fifteen years. Chalo was a major breakthrough in terms of digital payments in bus travel. Vogo can become a success but if BEST does not improve the service, both would end up being a distraction. Frankly, what is the use of booking a ticket on an app if the bus service itself is not reliable? The BEST Undertaking has entered the Endgame wherein either it will increase the service and win the trust of its users, or become ignorant to criticism with a dwindling bus fleet, till the day it is wiped out of existence.

Have you used a Vogo to get to a BEST bus? Do tell us your experience in the comments section.

Gandharva wrote a a follow-up review after two months; you can read it here:

Path To Inconvenience: Review Of Vogo E-Scooters After Two Months

Also Read:

Chalo, Aage Badho: Getting Familiar With BEST’s New App For Tickets

A Quick Guide To Using The Chalo Card On BEST Buses

A Ride In BEST Using The New Tap-In, Tap-Out System

I took a Rapido to work today, and now I want the government to legalize bike taxis

Featured Image: BEST Bus on A370 at Salviwadi, Mithagar Road, Mulund East (Photo: Gandharva Purohit for BESTpedia)