How a mobile app is changing lives, crime rates

MANILA, Philippines - Honest cab driver reports passenger’s lost belongings through the Easy Taxi mobile application.

It’s not all bad news about taxi drivers these days, as others are changing that negative image in their own little ways.

Among them is Manong Wenceslao, who recently returned P100,000 in cash to a passenger through a taxi-tracking mobile application.

Wenceslao picked up a foreigner from an event organized by the French Chamber of Commerce in Manila Hotel last Nov. 21. The foreigner left her bag containing her wallet, cellphone, documents, and other personal belongings in the cab.

Upon discovering the lost belongings, Wenceslao immediately sent a text message to a representative of Easy Taxi, the official taxi-booking partner for the event. The mobile tracking GPS system immediately tracked the passenger’s records, including her name, phone number, destination, and pick-up location. In less than 20 minutes, the customer care representatives handed the bag to the owner.

The technology used by the world’s largest taxi booking mobile application connects passengers to registered taxi drivers and tracks the users in real time via GPS. It is used in 20 countries and over 50 cities worldwide.

When asked what made him return that huge amount of cash, Wenceslao said it’s his obligation to return the lost items. The fact that new technological rebounds allow for easier communication between both sides to the transaction makes the whole process easy and convenient.

To promote similar behavior among taxi community, the company gave Wenceslao a cash reward, which he initially refused, expressing his modesty and overall gratitude to both Easy Taxi and his partner fleet, R&E. The taxi operator recently partnered with the taxi-booking app to empower the drivers with smartphones, as well as offer free meals and training on English speaking, hospitality, and personal development.

“Napakaganda, angkop na angkop ngayon yan (Very nice, it’s very practical nowadays),” said Wenceslao, referring to the concept of the taxi-tracking mobile application.

When asked how the mobile application is helping him, Wenceslao added, “Mas maraming pasahero, mga disente ang pasahero. Tipid pa sa gas dahil di ka na maghahanap (I get more passengers, decent passengers. I also save gas because I don’t have to look for passengers).”

Wenceslao also mentioned how taxi drivers get held up by passengers. Taxi booking applications give drivers security, not to mention extra income. The record tip received so far amounted to P3000, as reported by some taxi drivers hired for the recent event. The amount is equivalent to their two-day income.

“Drivers who get more income due to more opportunities with the present technology feel more encouraged to be honest, and that helps in solving recent scams,” said Mario Berta, Easy Taxi regional CEO who pledged to help improve Manila’s transportation industry.

“We cannot change people, but we can modify our environment. While taxi fleets thoroughly screen trustworthy drivers, technology breakthroughs like Easy Taxi reward them to make honesty easy,” Berta added.