Editor’s note: Today's article comes from Shan MS, Chief Operating Officer at Namma Yatri, India’s first zero-commission ride-hailing app. Shan shares how Namma Yatri built an equitable and consistent ride-hailing experience, while using robust road connectivity data to rapidly expand into Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities with Google Maps Platform.
Ride-hailing apps have thrived in a growing India, but the economics behind them were broken. Steep commissions drove drivers to financial distress and degraded the customer experience, with frequent cancellations and requests for platform disintermediation. The traditional model was neither sustainable nor felt innovative anymore. When we founded Namma Yatri, our vision was clear: build an equitable transportation platform that benefits everyone.
To redefine the on-demand cab business, we tackled two of the industry’s long-standing friction points with Namma Yatri. First, our unprecedented, zero-commission model enables drivers to access our platform for a nominal subscription fee, boosting their earnings by 20-30%. Second, our transparent, direct-to-driver system credits ride tariffs straight into drivers’ accounts — no intermediaries and cash payments needed. These decisions allowed us to build a fair and trustworthy platform, reflecting our core tenet of putting drivers and passengers first.
The Namma Yatri team is committed to building equitable transportation for everyone.
Our mission to transform urban mobility in India, however, transcends conventional ride-hailing. On the back of government-defined common network standards and open-source protocols, we aim to offer Indian commuters a multi-modal service where they can reserve a range of transportation options from cabs and rickshaws to public transportation. After empowering over 600,000 drivers in about a dozen Indian cities, we’re now gearing up to take Namma Yatri nationwide, with Google Maps Platform playing a key role in our journey.
Delivering fair and consistent pricing
At Namma Yatri, we’ve standardized consistent fares for drivers and riders through government-mandated pricing. Since it’s based on the distance traveled, precise location data is particularly vital for us, as even the slightest inaccuracies can affect user trust. But due to numerous fluctuating factors like traffic and road closures, we often found a disconnect between the estimates our app calculated before trips and the actual journey metrics. Google Maps Platform’s reliable, and accurate geospatial data helped us patch this gap.
Our rider app helps passengers easily request a ride with more accurate location data.
With the new Routes API, we could go a step further than relying on historical location data. It determines an optimal route between pickup and drop-off points while factoring in live traffic and road conditions. This helps us identify the most efficient path, and also one that aligns with the driver’s intuition and behavior, resulting in a significant reduction in route-related complaints. Now, when a passenger books a ride and a driver accepts, both parties can be confident that the suggested distance, time, and price will match their experience.
The in-app map experience helps both riders and drivers more easily connect.
Enabling frictionless pickups in congested cities
Before adopting Google Maps Platform, the dynamic nature of India’s evolving urban environments made it challenging for drivers and passengers to initially find each other. Because of ongoing construction, road modifications, and changing landmarks, pickup spots that existed yesterday were frequently unavailable the next day. The constant back-and-forth and calls to confirm locations caused delays and frustration on both ends. We leveraged precise geospatial information to minimize this friction. Soon, we’ll pair it with local, contextual insights, such as nearby landmarks, to eliminate it altogether.
Next on our roadmap is to enter more Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets without compromising on our service quality. Google Maps Platform has proved crucial in these expansion efforts, thanks to its uniform data accuracy and global coverage. This enables us to access the same high level of precision in routing data, no matter whether we're operating in a metropolitan area or a smaller city.
A familiar and transparent experience even in new markets
Together with Google Cloud partner Searce, we integrated Google Maps’ turn-by-turn navigation right inside our apps with the Navigation SDK. This unlocked an organic trust-building exercise for us. When passengers in new regions see that the route suggested in our app matches what they would see on consumer-facing Google Maps, it creates a layer of transparency that's invaluable in new markets where Namma Yatri is still establishing its presence.
As we continue to design new, unique, value-added services on top of our open-source systems, Google Maps Platform’s well-documented APIs, responsive support, and robust infrastructure have provided a solid foundation for our implementation efforts.
Over the last year, more than 10 million Indians have embraced our platform, and the journey has been remarkable. But we see this as just the beginning of our larger mission to transform urban mobility in India. The success of our zero-commission model has validated our belief that transparency and fair economics can go hand in hand with operational efficiency.
We regularly collaborate with our driver network to incorporate feedback and insights into our platform.
Looking ahead, our goal is to build upon Namma Yatri’s rapid adoption to take on more fundamental urban challenges. By integrating access to a variety of transportation mediums and focusing on last-mile connectivity, we aim to reduce urban congestion, while ensuring that mobility remains economically viable as well as environmentally conscious for all segments of society.
As we continue to grow, it’s reassuring to have a technology platform in Google Maps Platform that strikes a balance between delivering cutting-edge solutions and reliability. Its consistent performance and accuracy are essential in helping us maintain our promise of transparent and reliable service to both drivers and passengers.
