1.

Introduction:

The concept of e-hailing as a service could easily be consider the most disruptive innovation
in the last 10 years, its approach and formulation has changed the way consumer’s perceive
taxi services completely. At face value the approach to this innovation can be considered a
very basic consumer hurt solution, however the value proposition offered by e-hailing
providers has converted this consumer hurt into a need meeting service proposition.

E-hailing platforms have had so enjoyed so much success and this has led to an insatiable
consumer need for more services built on similar online model, in South Africa Uber has
launched 3 more platforms namely, Uber Packages, Uber Reserves and Uber Travel with
many variations under the Uber Ride platform. These platforms are built on moving goods
or people to their desired states. Since the formation of e-hailing platforms is based on
resource sharing for a fee the general sentiment is that the services offered are driven by
better quality, trust and flexibility (Möhlmann, 2015).

Whilst traditional taxi services existed prior to the formulation of the e-hailing service the
key differentiator has been the value proposition offered by these e-riding platforms. The
value proposition is so superior that in almost every market were e-hailing services are
rendered there is a considerable shift in consumer behaviour with these platforms emerging
as the preferred commuting choice.

2. Background to the research

Ehailing has grown significantly in popularity and use in the last decade, in 2012 around 6.5
million vehicles were enrolled on ehailing platforms with the number of vehicles on this
platforms forecasrted to be around 12 million vehicles in 2023. In South Africa revenue
generated from ride ehailing and taxi segments is anticipated to reach R15.2bn at the end
of 2023, with an annual compounded growth rate (CAGR) of 1.55% projected year on year.
The South Africa market is also predicted to see an increase in consumers opting more for
online based hailing platforms, with online sales anticipated to account for 46% of total taxi
and ride-hailing segment. There is direct correlation that existing between the quality
perceptions and customer retention and loyalty, and as such it is important that the drivers
in these factors is well understood. A lot of research has been commission on the QUALSERV
scale and many variations of this concept have been created including but not limited to:
BANKSERV, SITEQUAL, SITEQUAL, INDSERV,CUREL (Sing, 2008).

The success in e-hailing has also created a consumer shift where consumer opt to delay
vehicle purchases (Jing et al, 2023) with the global sentiment on new car sales being murky.
This service has been built on converting under-utilized and business seeking individuals to
list vehicles on the platform to render e-hailing services. With such a cost-effective
establishment manner it makes perfect sense as to why many competitors have entered this
segment and are fighting for a piece of the pie. This value proposition is built on the
principles of perceived value, quality of service, experience, expectations and subsequent
service evaluation (Sokoli et al, 2018)
E-hailing is anticipated to grow in South Africa and many offering based on the principle of
utilizing under used resources for the benefit of the consumer and resource owner will
continue to emerge. The impact of service quality in such innovations needs to be
understood as it will be the key factor in the continued success of these offering (including
but not limited to e-hailing and ridesharing service).

In this view, it is imperative that a study on this is commissioned as e-hailing platforms in

South Africa are under researched. This research study seeks to investigate the commuter
satisfaction levels with online ride-sharing platforms and the impact service quality has as a
catalyst for sustained growth in the South African context.

3. Problem Statement:

Ehailing is a well-established segment in South Africa, the competitive landscape has 2 key
players namely uber and bolt. Uber is the clear market leader and has over 20 000 drivers
on their platform using driver owned and rented vehicles to earn a living using their
platform. It is clear that ehailing platforms will continue to play a pivotal role in commuter
transportation into the foreseeable future, Cohen et al (2016) estimates that Uber X a mid
tier offering from Uber created a 6.8 billion dollar surplus in consumers. The surpluses
created by ride ehailing platforms allows for consumers to have more disposable income for
other needs. In South Africa there is a research gap in studies that investigate the gaps
between consumer expectations and the actual services offered. The lack of understanding
this will result in service providers (mainly Uber and Bolt) being unable to address specific
issues where their services may fall short, and this will result in poor customer experience
and it will drive consumers to find alternative services that better satisfy they needs.

Hence, this study aims to look at service quality in ride ehailing and its influence on
consumer satisfaction in south African consumers aged 18- 40. This group of users will
continue to drive the growth of the ehailing platform and understanding their satisfaction
drivers will aid in setting up this market segment for growth as it will help mitigate
satisfaction risk within ehailing commuters.

4. Aim and Objectives

4.1 Aim
This study aims to evaluate the commuter satisfaction of South Africans with ride
ehailing services

4.2 The following objectives are formulated to review the literature on commuter
satisfaction with ride ehailing in South Africa. \

 To investigate the relationship concerning customer satisfaction and service

quality dimensions in commuter ehailing services
 To determine the impact of quality service on customer retention in
commuter ehailing services
  To assess the current level of service quality provided by ride ehailing service
providers
 To identify areas of improvement in customer perceptions and expectations

5. Research Question

The proposed research question for this study as formulated by the problem statement and
introduction is:

What are the factors that influence commuter satisfaction with commuter ehailing
platforms in South Africa?

5.1 Purpose and justification of the study

The purpose of this study is to comprehensively understand the impact of quality service on
customer retention, loyalty and service usage. This study seeks to improve the commuter
understanding and provide valuable insights for the betterment of ehailing services to the
benefit of consumers fostering long term customer loyalty and satisfaction.

6. Literature Review:

This section provides a comprehensive literature review of the e-hailing platform, the
satisfaction of commuters with services offered by e-hailing services and products.

1. Reliability
Reliability is a significant and important factor in anticipating the degree in which a service
can be relied upon to yield the desired outcome post usage. If an organization offers
consistent services, then it will have high reliability. As stated by Smith et al (2002) reliability
is a key driver of satisfaction and loyalty in the transport sector. Customers are constantly
seeking services that they can rely on, a service that will deliver on time with minimal
disruptions or delays. The reliability of ant service grows when it is dependable, consistent
and delivers on its promise to perform consistently.

2: Assurance
The level of confidence a commuter has about an ehailing platform is assurance, factors that
drive assurance are, the timeous arrival of ehailing driver to a pick up, clear communication
regarding where the vehicle will be waiting and the overall professionalism of the driver
(driving style and the ability to follow instructions). A study by Yopusaf et al (2013) notes
that assurance positively influences customer satisfaction and loyalty in the transportation
industry. Commuters have a need to be assured of their safe and secure journey, this drives
them to opt for prioviders that are offered by reliable and trustworthy service providers.
3: Tangibility
Commuters are seeking riding experiences that are clean, neat and appear good, tangibility
address these factors as it is the physical appearance of the product or service provided by
the ehailing service provider. It includes things like cleanliness, neatness, and appearance.
Study by Choi et al (2016) emphasized the importance of tangibility in ehailing platforms.
Commuters perceive tangible aspects as key indicators of service quality. The selection of
ehailing platforms is influenced by the perceptions commuters hold on the tangibility of the
service provided. It is critical that the vehicles are well maintained and the requesting
application are user friendly.
4. Empathy
Empathy is the clear understanding of what customers want an need, whilst ehailing
platform are built for scale it is important to have personalized segements that speak to a
specific ethnographic group. In the context of ehailing it is important that the customer
support including response rates to enquiries and compliants and driver behaviour are
delivered timeously. Verhoef et al. (2014) discussed that empathy significantly influences
customer satisfaction and loyalty in the service industry as ride ehailing. Customers want to
be heard and they want their feedback to be considered and a simply response to their
concerns takes care of this.

5: Responsiveness
Responsiveness refers to how quickly a customer is assisted specifically in relation to the
promptness and willingness of their concern being addressed. The service provider should
proactively communicate with the customer in order to help manage expectations. Studies
by Keiningham et al. (2007) emphasized the importance of responsiveness in ehailing
services. With these platforms being online customers have strong expectations on the
responsiveness and ability to provide real time updates, speed resolutions to problems and
transparent communication.

The literature suggests that ehailing providers should provide services quality be adhering to
each of the attributed discussed above.

Hypothesis:

The following hypothesis has been developed for this study, this hypothesis presents a
relationship between reliability, assurance, tangibility, empathy and responsiveness on
commuter satisfaction with ehailing platforms:
 There is a positive relationship between reliability and commuter satisifaction with
ehailing services
 There is a positive relationship between assurance and commuter satisifaction with
ehailing services
 There is a positive relationship between tangibility and commuter satisifaction with
ehailing services
 There is a positive relationship between empathy and commuter satisifaction with
ehailing services
 There is a positive relationship between responsiveness and commuter satisifaction
with ehailing services
Based on the hypotheses developed for this study, the following conceptual model was
developed:

Figure 1.

RELIABILITY H1

H2
ASSURANCE

COMMUTER
H3 SATISFACTION
TANGIBILITY

H4

EMPATHY

H5

RESPONSIVENESS

In general, these five dimensions are considered representative of the dimensions of service
quality for different types of services

Cohen, P., Hahn, R. & Metcalfe, R. 2016. Using Big Data to Estimate Consumer Surplus: The
Case of Uber. Cambridge, MA. doi:10.3386/w22627

Jing Gong, Brad N. Greenwood, Yiping (Amy) Song (2023) An Empirical Investigation of
Ridesharing and New Vehicle Purchase. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management

Möhlmann, M. (2015), “Collaborative consumption: determinants of satisfaction and the

likelihood of using a sharing economy option again”, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, Vol. 14
No. 3, pp. 193-207.
Sokoli, D, Koren, A Gutierrez C (2018) STUDENT’S PERCEPTION OF ACADEMIC QUALITY: A
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Singh, N., William Koehler, Mohan Agrawal, (2008). Service Quality in the Commercial
Passenger Transport Industry in India. 3rd International Conference on Services
Management, May 9-10, 2008, Penn Stater Conference Center

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