Taxis are an essential part of modern life, whether you need a lift home after clubbing with your girlfriends or are trying to get to your hotel from the airport in a foreign city. Though taxis play an important part in our life, the old methods of hailing them are not. With the growing technology, you do not have to call a cab and you need not have to stand on the sidewalk and wave your hand to stop one. You just have to take your phone out of your pocket and use the new breed of apps to make finding a taxi faster and more affordable than ever. The following are some of the best taxi riding apps for you:
- Uber
This taxi riding app is available for Android, Windows and iPhone. Its services are available in 48 countries, though usually in major cities. You just have to request a ride through the mobile app and the nearest one to your location will be available to you in just minutes. So you can stay free of the hassles of booking in advance, you can just request one when and where you want. You can get the estimate of how much your journey will cost, how far you have to travel. It is great when you are in a new city and you do not know your exact address. You just have to log into your account on the app and your location can be seen through GPS on your phone. You can also check how much time it will take the driver to reach your location.
- Curb
Formerly known as Taxi Magic, this taxi riding app connects you to a reliable and safe rise from the professional drivers. You can request your ride with a single tap of a button. You can track your driver’s arrival and pay your fare effortlessly. Your ride will reach you in seconds. Curb works only with professional taxi and for hire drivers, so you do not have to worry about your safety. Users can choose the vehicles they like and the payment choices which suit them.
- Lyft
Do you need a ride? Then you must use Lyft to get an affordable ride in just minutes. Instead of hailing a cab or waiting for a bus or train, just request a car with a single click, and you will get picked up a driver nearby and you can ride to your destination easily. This app is cheaper than a taxi and you can reach your destination faster than when you ride the bus. You do not have to worry about paying in cash, you can pay through your phone and it is a easy and secure method of paying. You can split your costs with friends. This taxi service is similar to Uber and is available in large cities. One great feature about this is you can find people that take the same route regularly and split the fare with them. This makes it great for those who commute to work or those who take daily trips.
- Ola cabs
This is another great taxi riding app which offers city taxi rides on a point to point basis across several cities. This app is changing the way people move around in the cities with a wide range of cabs options to choose from, Mini, Sedan and Prime. Users have to just set their pickup location, pick the cab they life and check the available cabs which are nearby. By tapping the “ride now” button you can book your ride and you will get a quick confirmation with the details of the driver. You can see your ride en route on the map and after you finish your ride you can use Ola Money for a cash free ride. You can also book a ride for later by setting a schedule. If you refer others to this app using your referral code, you can earn free Ola Money.
- Easy taxi
This is the most downloaded taxi application in the world. The app connects passengers and taxi drivers enabling them to enjoy a convenient, fast and safe ride, with a single tap. This app is available on iOS, Android, Blackberry, Windows phone and for business to business clients through Easy Taxi Corporate solutions and Easy Taxi PRO. This app has a dynamic UI, fare calculation option, revamped search engine. You can calculate the fare and the arrival time and track the info about your cab and driver’s identity.
- Sidecar
This app is similar to Lyft and Uber, but it takes one step ahead into picking out your actual driver allowing you to view actual vehicles and driver information in advance. Users can check the fare upfront so they know exactly how much they have to pay before booking the ride. This app performs background checks, carries liability insurance and users can pay through the app. This app’s services are currently available in Seattle, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, San Diego and Washington DC. For those who want more control over the vehicle type when picking a ride, Sidecar is the best choice.
- Hailo
This is taxi app is available for Android and iPhone users. It is similar to the Uber app, but more simpler to use. This is the easiest way to hail a ride. It is just minutes away and is very reliable. You have to set your pick up location, choose a car you like and tap “Hailo Now” and that is all. Their services are available in Manchester, London, Liverpool, Leeds in London, nationwide in Ireland and Singapore and in Madrid and Barcelona in Spain. You can track your car or you will be notified when your car has come. Payments are simple, you can pay through your app for a cashless ride. You can get started with a £10 or €10 off your first ride. You can prebook your ride up to 4 weeks in advance.