The transformation of practically all sectors of the Spanish economy has been led by digitization. These changes have not been unrelated to cab. For this reason, Free Now has conducted a survey to find out its impact in this field.
It follows that almost half of those surveyed, 44.9%, believe that the taxi sector has evolved considerably in the last five years and for 92%, this improvement has been possible thanks to digitization that has allowed them, among other things, to book a route at the click of a button and stop using traditional reservation forms that are already considered residual. In fact, only 6.3% prefer to book a taxi at street level and 2.2% through a station.
Another reason that, according to the study data, explains the evolution of the taxi industry and that has been highly valued by users is the appearance of other forms of payment beyond cash, such as card payment or through apps.
This option has been indicated by 74.2% of the participants, who believe that it has helped to improve the service offered by the taxi. In this sense, 78% of users emphasize that knowing the fixed price of their journey in advance has had a positive influence on the use of the taxi.
The appearance of applications as a method for booking of the different transport services has revolutionized the mobility sector, which has caused users to install several of them on their mobile terminals depending on the transport they choose at all times.
In this sense, 52.8% of the participants in the survey affirm that they use, on average, two-three transport applications. For this reason, and for greater convenience, up to 70% of those surveyed consider an application that integrates the largest number of mobility options to be very useful.
The application, therefore, has become a key element for the present of mobility in cities, where the inclusion of shared cars, scooters and electric motorcycles is essential. For this reason, in Spain, this year Free Now has integrated into the app the services of electric motorcycles and electric bikes of Cooltra, and the shared cars of Share Now, making available to its users more than 4,000 new electric and low-impact vehicles environmental
Digitization and sustainability go hand in hand
Digitization has allowed the mobility sector to reduce its level of polluting emissions into the atmosphere since, thanks to the reservation of routes through the app, it is prevented, for example, that the taxi circulates through the city without passengers.
On the other hand, from the application itself it is possible to prioritize the services of electric vehicles, a fact that is important for 20% of Europeans and 25% of Spaniards, who would be willing to pay more for an electric vehicle trip, according to the latest data collected in the Free Now study “Make a Move”.
In keeping with this trend, the electrification of the fleet is one of Free Now’s goals. In fact, in Spain the electric taxi fleet has grown by 272% and 642% more trips have been made in electric taxis since the beginning of this year. Spain is thus one of the European countries where the mobility platform is making the most progress in terms of sustainability and electrification.
“From Free Now we have been able to observe first-hand how digitization has fully impacted the taxi sector. Despite the rapidity of changes, the sector has been able to adapt, offering new forms of reservation, payment, such as the fixed price rate, such as our Lite option and access to the service, at the same time that it has been transformed into an increasingly sustainable industry. The digitization of the taxi sector is undeniable and unstoppable and will be a process of continuous evolution and transformation, which will go hand in hand with new technologies and the needs of its users », says Jaime Rodríguez de Santiago, CEO of Free Now in Spain.
