On December 1, the Seoul Metropolitan Government officially launched TABA, a dedicated taxi-hailing application tailored for foreign tourists. (Image courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government)
SEOUL, Dec. 5 (Korea Bizwire) – On December 1, the Seoul Metropolitan Government officially launched TABA, a dedicated taxi-hailing application tailored for foreign tourists.
The initiative stems from the city’s ongoing support for the collaboration between Globaleur, a travel-focused startup, and a private company, to create a user-friendly taxi-hailing service for international visitors.
Conventional taxi-hailing services pose challenges for foreign tourists, requiring authentication through domestic mobile phone companies and predominantly accepting payments via domestically issued cards.
TABA addresses these issues by enabling tourists to authenticate using their phone number, regardless of where it is from, and facilitating payments with overseas cards. Additionally, by the year’s end, TABA plans to incorporate social networking service (SNS) login and email verification features.
Upon entering their destination, tourists can preview the distance and fare, taking into account real-time traffic conditions. They have the flexibility to choose from recommended, shortest, and toll-free routes based on their preferences.
The app also allows users to select from different taxi types, including medium, large, and luxury options.
TABA supports multiple languages, including English, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Japanese, and Thai. Future plans involve expanding language options to include Vietnamese, Indonesian, and Russian in the first half of next year.
Furthermore, the app provides valuable information about major tourist attractions. By pressing the “Go Here Now” button within the app, foreign tourists can effortlessly set the selected attraction as their destination.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
