With Google Maps often glitching and drivers fumbling with directions, a simple cab ride in Kolkata can sometimes feel like a mystery tour minus the fun factor.
A short trip from Newtown to Sector V turned into a confusing detour through the narrow lanes of Salt Lake for author Aryani Banerjee, a south Kolkata resident, last month.
Her cab driver admitted he could not read the map on his phone.
“He asked me to guide him instead. But if I am on an app cab, why should I be directing the driver? It was a simple route. He wasn’t even apologetic,” Aryani told My Kolkata.
This is no one-off story. Across the city, passengers are reporting daily struggles as app cab drivers fail to follow maps. Companies including Uber, Ola, Rapido and Yatri Sathi do not offer any map literacy workshops or training to their drivers. My Kolkata reached out to these companies but did not receive a response.
Learning on the job
For most drivers, the only way to get around the problem is by learning from peers.
“There is no guidance from the companies in reading maps. My map was set to Hindi, and now I don’t know how to change the language,” said Lakshman Kumar Yadav, a Yatri Sathi cab driver.
Akhilesh Kumar Singh, who drove a yellow taxi before joining an app platform, admitted that the bylanes remain a problem. “If the passenger doesn’t know the route, I see the map. I do not understand it fully. None of the app cab companies provide us with any support. The map that the app shows is also not very reliable.”
Passengers often bear the brunt of this lack of map-reading skill among drivers. “Uber driver left me in a place which was not the location I selected. It will be more common during Durga Puja because of the pandals. Most drivers cannot read the Google Maps and the companies also do not take any initiative to educate them. It does not take much to have workshops while on-boarding,” said Kolkata-based consultant Arnab Mandal.
Yellow cab woes
West Bengal government’s Yatri Sathi, which has brought yellow taxis into the app-cab ecosystem, faces a bigger challenge. Many yellow taxi drivers are not comfortable with smartphones. The result is frequent delays and wrong turns.
“I booked a cab and the driver came half an hour late because he could not find the location or read the map. They don’t even take calls sometimes. This is a very big issue,” said Sayantan Banerjee, a primary school teacher from Kasba.
For commuters with disabilities, the problem is worse, pointed out Sayantan, who is visually impaired. “Uber, Ola, SnapE also are not accessible for all. They are not sensitised to be considerate to persons with visual impairment or persons with disability. This is very much needed in our city,” he said.
Glitches and detours
Even when drivers try to follow Google Maps, glitches often make matters worse. During the festive season, diversions and one-way restrictions add to the confusion. “Suppose someone comes to Kolkata during Durga Puja and the cab driver says he will take you to a location. Most of the roads are blocked or one-way. If they can’t read the map, it becomes a very big problem for us,” Sayantan added.
Some experiences turn into bizarre episodes. Coffee artist Partha Mukherjee still remembers one late-night ride from Salt Lake to south Kolkata. “The yellow cab driver said he knew a route with no traffic. I ended up seeing almost all major pujas on my way home, stuck in traffic, while he sang old Bollywood songs at the top of his voice. I started at 9pm and reached past midnight,” he recalled.
No upskilling on the agenda
Frequent users of these apps point out that the larger issue is the absence of structured training for drivers. Young recruits, many from outside Bengal, often enter the profession with little or no experience of using gadgets. The companies rely heavily on GPS-based apps but provide no formal instruction to drivers on how to use them effectively. The passengers My Kolkata spoke to unanimously said that complaining about it has made no difference.
“There is a rising problem. Drivers are entering this profession without any training. Many are not well-versed with smartphone technology. Passengers are facing issues every day because drivers do not know how to read maps. We are losing time,” Aryani summed up.