Didi's rides offer relief to virus-hit Mexicans

MEXICO CITY－Mexico City resident Lorena Hernandez admitted she was hesitant about using her ride-hailing app to summon a car for a recent trip to the outskirts of the capital amid the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico.

But her fears subsided soon when she was assured of the precautions taken by her driver and Didi, the Chinese ride-hailing company that rolled out the app on mobile devices, she said.

"What seemed most important to me was that the application itself provides hygiene recommendations for boarding the car, as well as the steps the driver has to take," said Hernandez, a 37-year-old professional.

"When I boarded the car, the driver told me about the hygiene measures and the recommendations for a safe ride, such as avoiding talking to the driver, using antibacterial gel and keeping a safe distance," she said.

Throughout the ride, she carefully complied with the measures Didi recommended at a time when COVID-19 cases kept rising, said Hernandez.

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing, better known as Didi, has earmarked 150 million pesos ($6.6 million) to implement infection-prevention measures in Mexico.

The company, which began operating in Mexico in 2018, has installed plastic barriers inside vehicles, supplied drivers and delivery partners with sanitizers and other hygienic goods, and created a support fund for them.

It has also provided free Didi Food deliveries and discounts in conjunction with restaurants and launched the "Didi Hero" program, which offers certified healthcare workers rides at half price.

Its protection strategies are in place in cities with a large presence of global Chinese firms, including Mexico's three largest cities: Mexico City, Guadalajara in the west and Monterrey in the north.

"It is important ... for people to contribute (to combating the virus) by staying at home," said Juan Andres Panama, director of operations at Didi Mexico.

The Mexican government declared a health emergency on March 30 that stressed staying at home as non-essential businesses were closed or scaled back.

In mid-March, Didi announced 10 fundamental steps to adapt its services to the health crisis in the country, based on the experience it has accumulated in fighting the pandemic in other parts of the world.

Rogelio Rosales, a 49-year-old mechanical engineer, turned to Didi last month to go from the central Roma district of Mexico City to Cristo Rey, a neighborhood approximately 6.5 km west of the capital.

"My driver was wearing a face mask during the whole ride trip, and I was very happy about that because I went to visit my 90-year-old mother," Rosales said.

"Not only was the service excellent, but what made it even better was that the fare was very low as well, something that helps in these times of (economic) paralysis," he said.

Mexico has reported over 30,000 deaths from COVID-19 and more than 300,000 cases of infections earlier this month since the virus was first detected in the country on Feb 28.

Xinhua