In another recent incident involving taxi-hailing app, an Uber passenger was forced to take to the steering wheel during his ride from Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) to his home, after the designated driver was found in an inebriated state. The driver eventually fell asleep. He tweeted a picture of himself in the driver’s seat, with the driver in the passenger seat, explaining the incident.
“The ride back from Bangalore airport was not quite what I expected. The driver was drunk and drowsy. I had to pull the car over to the side and I drove all the way home. Pic with the driver in the rider seat passed out,” the passenger tweeted along with a photo of the driver and a screenshot of the trip.
He later tweeted saying that the Uber safety team responded to his complaints and stated that passengers should not drive the cabs due to safety issues. "Uber safety team promptly called back about 20 hours later. They said I shouldn't drive a cab because that's a safety issue. And that they'll educate the driver whatever that means and might terminate the driver if there's recurrence," read the tweet.
@Uber_India, the ride back from Bangalore airport was not quite what I expected. The driver was drunk and drowsy. I had to pull the car over to the side and I drove all the way home. Pic with the driver in the rider seat passed out.
— Surya Oruganti (@suryaoruganti) September 9, 2018
You need to fix this @Uber , @Uber_Support pic.twitter.com/G7LB0caeTM
Responding to the complaints, an Uber spokesperson told TNM, “This is a regrettable and concerning incident. While we take all possible measures to ensure that drivers behind the wheel match the person shown on the app, in rare instances, when this doesn't happen, we encourage riders to cancel their rides immediately and report the issue on the app, so that immediate actions can be taken. Upon learning about this incident, the driver profile was removed from the app and we are looking into the matter. We stand ready to further assist the rider and law enforcement as required.”
This is one of the latest incidents that have come to light, following a number of complaints by riders to private cab services, such as Uber and Ola, in which drivers have violated rules or misbehaved with passengers. Earlier, in two separate incidents, women passengers were harassed by Ola drivers, which outraged many, who also called for strict action against the drivers.