Hello, beautiful people! Happy new month! I hope this month brings you progress and the fulfillment of your heart’s desires.
Talking about online rides, I’ve had my fair share of experiences, some good, others absolutely terrible. In this article, I’ll be highlighting the most traumatizing and unforgettable one.
On that fateful day, I had been traveling by road for a solid eight hours from Akure to Abuja. Typically, this journey shouldn’t take more than five, maybe six hours max. But for some reason, the driver we got was unusually slow and took his sweet time. I wasn’t in a hurry, though. My final destination was Sokoto, so my plan was to break the journey in two, rest for the night at my friend’s family house in Abuja, then continue to Sokoto the next day.
I arrived in Abuja around 7 PM. Before I left home, my friend had already warned me that Abuja can be dangerous at night, especially for a newcomer like me. Thankfully, the bus driver dropped us at a police checkpoint, which made me feel a bit safer. If you’re familiar with Abuja, you’d know that moving from one street to another sometimes feels like a mini travel. You could drive for almost an hour just to get to a shopping mall and trust me, I’m not even exaggerating.
At the checkpoint, I kept my luggage close and decided to order a Bolt ride. It was my first time in Abuja, so I figured taking a Bolt would be easier than hopping from one cab to another just to get to my destination.
Now, let’s talk about one thing Bolt drivers do that annoys me seriously. They never want to charge the price displayed on the app. I get that fuel prices have skyrocketed, and it’s not always profitable to stick to those rates. But if you must increase the price, at least be reasonable. The app says ₦1,500, but these drivers will start calling ₦6,000, are you joking? I don’t understand this mentality of making ride-hailing services seem like a luxury. It’s not like they’ll turn on the AC or personalize the music to my playlist, so what’s the deal?
Anyway, back to my story. After some bargaining, the driver and I finally agreed on ₦2,500.
The moment the ride started, I knew I was in for an unpleasant journey. This man kept making pervy comments, which I tried to ignore. I’ll chalk it up to him “shooting his shot,” but trust me, his words were creepy as h*ll. He started talking about how girls should wear gowns instead of joggers and sweatpants, and I was just there, too exhausted to argue, plus I didn't want to aggravate him, because, who knows what he could do? And mind you, I was wearing joggers that day, so you can imagine how I felt sitting there.
Luckily, I had taken safety precautions before getting into the car, I'd sent his plate number and a picture of the car to my dad and friend. My live location was also on and being streamed to my family and friend in real time. I was chatting with them throughout the ride, just to be safe.
Thirty minutes into the journey, he suddenly announced that we had arrived and told me to call my friend for the house number. I was so relieved to finally be out of this situation. But before stepping out, I took a picture of the estate gate and sent it to my friend.
Then she called.
“Mide, no… that’s not the street. You’re in the wrong place.”
Confused, I told the driver, but he insisted, “Noooo, this is where you told me.”
Thankfully, the Bolt app clearly shows both your pickup and destination points. So I pulled it up and showed him. That’s when this man had the audacity to say, “Ah, my phone was hanging, so I didn’t check the app. I only brought you to where I heard you say.”
And then, the icing on top, if I wanted him to take me to my actual destination, I would have to double the fare and pay ₦5,000.
At that moment, I genuinely laughed. Because at this point, were they selling audacity at 50% discount that evening? If you wanted to lie, at least be creative. “My phone was hanging” is the best you could come up with?
By now, my friend was freaking out. It was getting late, and not only was I in a completely different location, but I was also stuck with a self-appointed delusional character.
I decided, two can play this game.
I said, “No problem, let’s go.”
When we finally arrived at the correct estate, I quickly offloaded my luggage and handed them to a bikeman that was supposed to take me inside as foreign rides weren't allowed in the estate. Then, I transferred the original ₦2,500 to the driver. Just as he was about to start ranting, I walked straight to the estate’s security post.
I played a voice note I had sent my friend earlier, recordings of the perverted things he was saying in the car and narrated the full story to the security personnel.
Bless those kind men. They didn’t even waste time. They threatened to have him arrested if he didn’t leave immediately. That’s when he suddenly became scared and sped off, but not before muttering, “I will find you in Abuja and deal with you.”
LOL. Try it and see.
When I finally got inside, my friend’s mom told us that some Bolt drivers do this deliberately, taking riders to the wrong location and then blaming it on them just to extort more money. It’s scammers like this that ruin the job for the good ones.
I truly hope they meet their match someday.
This was just one of the two bad experiences I’ve had. Thankfully, the most of the rides I've ever had have been pleasant. I love the convenience of ride-hailing services, but I hate the suspense that comes with not knowing what price the driver will decide to charge.
Above all, I know that nothing guarantees safety but it's important to know that using Uber or Bolt does not equal safer ride. Whether it's a ride-hailing service, courier or public rides, I always put important safety precautions in place. Better to be safe than sorry.
Thank you for reading! :)