Bangalore: Bangaloreans hailing auto rickshaws can now get fare and route details instantly by sending a text message to a designated number. Launched in association with Bangalore city traffic police, the app called Autofare was conceptualized by Bangalore-based start-up Ideophone, and uses txtWeb, Intuit Inc.’s open platform for SMS-based applications.
SMS users will be charged 50 paise per query, which should be sent in a pre-set format including the name of the city source and destination to 51115. The user then receives a message with the distance, auto fare and landmarks on the route. Photo: Mint
Feature phones without Internet access can use SMS, while web users can access the Android app.
The user then receives a message with the distance, auto fare and landmarks on the route. “This service will be very useful for new people who come to the city and are not aware of the local auto fare as well as people who own a phone but do not have access to the Internet,†said Srividhya Ramarathnam, business head of txtWeb, at the launch of this service.
“Going forward, we would want to introduce a user-based feedback system where the user can register complaint against the auto drivers,†said Ramarathnam. Dayanandsaid both organizations could work together to explore an idea of a complaint platform so that user complaints can directly reach the police via this service.
Autofare is the fifth such app endorsed by Bangalore’s traffic police. Its previous technology-based collaborations include Happy Auto and Public Eye. As a platform, txtWeb has so far hosted over 3,500 apps, many of which have been developed by third parties.
