Ride-Hailing services: My Adventure in the Land of Tro-tro and Keke.

This story is for those of us who are “fortunate” or sometimes “unfortunate” to use ride-hailing services (e.g Shaxi, Uber, Bolt, Yango, Lyft, etc) in Ghana.

There are times when you need to get some work done before you get to your destination. Sometimes you may even be just too tired to drive or even want to enjoy the comfort of your own space before you get to the next point. Whatever your reason may be, many of us have had to use a ride-hailing service at one point in time. Whether in Ghana or in any other part of the world.

For the purpose of our reflection today, I want to contrast my experiences with ride-hailing services in Ghana and Nigeria. What makes this even more compelling is the difference in the quality of service offered by the same brands in these two West African countries.

In 2021, I had my first experience with a ride-hailing service in Nigeria. This is how it all unfolded. The moment I got into the car, the driver was the first to greet and say hello. The first thing that I noticed was that, unlike Ghana, the air-conditioning in the car was on and fully functional, the music was at reasonable decibel level and obviously the interior was well maintained. Note that all of this happened while I had said nothing about my destination and the driver had also not asked same. As soon as we arrived at our destination, my friend who was hosting me just proceeded to alight and my reaction was “Eeeeiiii aren’t you going to pay? He then replied that his card was linked to the app and payment had been made with that. I burst into laughter and he immediately understood why. You see he is also a Ghanaian and is fully aware that none of the ride-hailing service drivers are comfortable with a card payment option. (So much for a cash-light economy…let me go my way!).

Fast forward, I visited again in 2022 and the experience with ride-hailing services was still good. This time, what caught my attention was when I realized that most of the rides had phone chargers visibly available in their cars. I then engaged one of the drivers to confirm if this was a standard or a requirement. He explained that it’s not a requirement for them to have phone chargers but it is nice to have so most drivers have it in case a passenger may want to use it.

I have encountered some good experiences with ride-hailing services in Ghana but that good service is more of an exception than the norm. We must do a lot more because our ride-hailing service in Ghana is not the best.

Here are a few more experiences my family, friends and I have had over time.

• A driver calls or sends a message to confirm your destination before he decides to provide the service.
• A driver arrives and as you sit, he looks at the app and asks if it is a return trip. One driver asked me to get down because it is a return trip and he won’t go again.
• They prefer cash to momo or connecting your card to the app.
• A driver whiles having a passenger in his car, stopped by his girlfriend's house to give her money and engaged in “love chats” while the passenger was sitting in the car waiting.
• Air-condition is a “NO NO NO”. Most cars if not all don’t offer air conditioning. (This was a big selling point/brand promise at the outset of ride-hailing services in Ghana, what changed?)
• Drivers accept and cancel trips at will, so while you may be thinking he has arrived, you later notice that it’s been canceled.

It didn’t come to me as a surprise when some bloggers and media personalities who visited Ghana in December shared their bad experiences with ride-hailing services in Ghana. Why should the same brand provide contrary services in two different countries?

The question then comes to;

Is it a problem related to culture and mindset regarding service?

Is it a problem of management?

Is it a refusal to take ownership?

Is it the issue of policies?

Is it an Employer-employee management relationship?

I believe ride-hailing services in Ghana can do better. Actually, I insist they do better!

Feel free to share your ride-hailing experiences with me, we just might cause a change.