Zingo's new future style taxi hailing service uses location-based services to let passengers hail the nearest London cab driver by mobile phone. Whistling begone?
Ever waited in vain on a rainy street corner for that elusive taxi? Or found yourself wandering around a dodgy part of town trying to spot a yellow light? Now, for the first time since London taxis were licensed more than 350 years ago, there’s a new way to hail taxis in the capital of the United Kingdom. Could traditional cabbie whistles soon be a thing of the past?
Debuting a world first in London, taxi-hailing service Zingo puts passengers in direct contact with a nearby licensed London cab driver by mobile phone - allowing them to hail a cab even when one cannot be spotted. By making a call to a national rate number, britons can speak directly to a nearby, available licensed taxi driver who will then come and collect them.
Using GSM-based positioning technology to identify both the position of the caller and that of a nearby available Zingo taxi, the service automatically connects an incoming mobile call direct to the cab driver’s hands-free mobile. Then, the caller shares his precise location with the driver, who in turn will switch off his ‘for hire’ light and come straight to the caller's location. A £1.40 GBP payment is added to the fare by the driver (the "Telephone Arrangement Fee" set by the Public Carriage Office fare table), which is then collected by Zingo on a weekly basis.
Also, an on-board credit card payment facility in all Zingo cabs will let users avoid searching for cash points before (or during) the journey in favor of paying with plastic. The service is expected to be rolled out across other major UK cities, although Zingo did not commit to any specific dates.
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