Can't Hail a Cab? How to Use the Didi Dache App

Crystal Li | Apr 25, 2013 4:00 pm | 5 comments | 16057 reads

Beijing is full of taxis, so why can you never seem to catch one when you need it? In the midst of taxi reform, smartphone booking apps like Didi Dache ( 嘀嘀打车) have become popular in the market recently, so we decided to give it a try.

Didi Dache is free to download for both the iPhone and Android, but you need to register with your cell phone number so that taxi drivers can reach you. After you put in your number and confirm, you will get to a page with two main buttons.

The first option is to "Make a Reservation" (预约用车). In this window, type in your location and your destination and set up your booking time, which needs to be at least 30 minutes later than the time you submit your request. Finally, choose one of the four options for tip, which goes straight to the cab driver: RMB 0, RMB 5, RMB 10, and RMB 20. A note on the app suggests that you pay more if you're going on a short distance trip, or navigate to the second button "I Need a Taxi Now" (现在用车).

The "I Need a Taxi Now" tab is voice controlled, so you must speak Chinese to book.

Once I went through all the steps, I never actually was able to use Didi Dache because every time I was about to try, an empty taxi just pulled over in front of me. All the places I planned to go to were within RMB 20 away from my starting point. I live and work downtown, and I don’t want to pay extra in tips to get a cab.

Word of warning: Don't stand the driver up, or there's a large chance you won't be able to use the app again unless you change your number.

If you're worried about Didi Dache's effectiveness, it's really all relative to where you are and when. Certainly plenty of drivers are using the app. Already, more than 30,000 Beijing taxi drivers have Didi Dache in their phones, according to Baidu Baike.

Photo: senfwurst on Flickr

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Jerry's picture Jerry Submitted by Guest on Fri, 04/26/2013 - 09:25

In the meantime, here is a post on Technode that cites a Chinese article quoting a cab driver who says these apps really don't work well for the drivers:

Quote:
From last year to now, we have had a flock of Uber-like services in China, at lease in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai. The well-known include Didi, Yyzhaoche and Kuaidadi. All of them were launched in 2012 and have the same business model: tips – Chinese are not used to tipping at all though. Minor differences include some share income with drivers while some charge them.

Unlike troubles Uber encountered in the U.S. with regulators, those Chinese apps will have their own. I came across an article (article in Chinese) in which a Beijing-based taxi driver says he knows better. Mr. Ma, having been driving a taxi for four years, thinks those app developers are wasting too much money on marketing.

To have taxi drivers adopt their apps, those app development companies would approach taxi companies or drivers to have every cab equipped with a smart device with their apps installed in.

One app managed to have every driver with Mr. Ma’s company equipped with a tablet — drivers had to pay 25 yuan for a monthly data plan and 300 yuan as deposit (it’s unknown whether the app development company would take the devices back and refund drivers).

But Mr. Ma and his colleagues returned the devices soon for “that device is too big and not convenient”, apart from resentment over the expenses.

Jerry Chan, Digital Marketing & Content Strategy Director

Jerry's picture Jerry Submitted by Guest on Fri, 04/26/2013 - 09:19

Here's the "How To" part:

Quote:
The first option is to "Make a Reservation" (预约用车). In this window, type in your location and your destination and set up your booking time, which needs to be at least 30 minutes later than the time you submit your request. Finally, choose one of the four options for tip, which goes straight to the cab driver: RMB 0, RMB 5, RMB 10, and RMB 20. A note on the app suggests that you pay more if you're going on a short distance trip, or navigate to the second button "I Need a Taxi Now" (现在用车).

Your point about more follow-up testing is duly noted - we'll try it out more and update in this space. If any readers have experiences with this app (good or bad), please feel free to comment below as well.

Jerry Chan, Digital Marketing & Content Strategy Director

BumbleBeeTou's picture BumbleBeeTou Submitted by Guest on Fri, 04/26/2013 - 01:01

"...so we decided to give it a try."

Sorry for asking more of reporters than simply pressing a few buttons while waiting on the side of the street.

I put the word 'review' that way, because this obviously wasn't a review. But I still think I have the right to call them out for writing a 'How to', where they don't actually say if the app they are talking about actually functions or not.

BumbleBeeTou's picture BumbleBeeTou Submitted by Guest on Thu, 04/25/2013 - 16:33

Typical tbj staff reporting. 8|

Why are you putting up a 'review' of an app that you haven't actually tested from start to finish?

Surely you could have waited to publish until you actually had an opportunity to see if it works, and tested it from different locations and times.

As is, this 'article' doesn't tell us anything.

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