A fourth rideshare platform is set to launch in Canberra, with drivers on the Chinese-owned Didi service picking up customers from Monday.
It has been a difficult year for rideshare drivers, with the number of trips falling as people have limited travel due to COVID-19.
Kishan Prajapati, 29, is among the company's new drivers in Canberra and said he was looking forward to getting started on the app, which he said offered drivers a better commission than other providers.
"It's a good spot because in Canberra we've got good people and there's less people, so there's not much traffic congestion on the road, so it's easy to drive and it's good timing, so we can arrive the customer on time," Mr Prajapati said.
"I actually love to talk to the people. I openly talk with them about how they're doing, how was their day, and everything like that."
Mr Prajapati, who has been driving for rideshare operators full-time in Canberra for three years, said he worked about 30 hours a week and the rate of trips was returning to normal in Canberra after a sharp decline during COVID-19 shutdown measures.
Mr Prajapati also has plenty of hand sanitiser and alcohol wipes on hand to keep the car clean between trips.
Didi spokesman Dan Jordan said despite the economic downturn driven by COVID-19, it was the perfect time to launch the rideshare app in Canberra. Didi will also launch in 19 other Australian locations on Monday.
Mr Jordan said Didi had launched a service, driven by artificial intelligence, in Melbourne which required drivers to be wearing masks before they could start using the app.
"Didi is the most affordable rideshare platform on the market. At a time where people are looking to save as much as possible, we can make ridesharing more affordable in Canberra," Mr Jordan said.
He said the app was safe, trips were monitored and issues were investigated.
Mr Jordan declined to say how many drivers had signed up in Canberra. He said the company was "exceptionally" pleased with the sign-up rate, which was 20 per cent higher than internal targets.
Didi entered Australia in 2018, after launching in China in 2012.
The ACT was the first Australian jurisdiction to regulate ridesharing, introducing cuts to taxi licence fees and accreditation rules for ridesharing businesses following a review of the territory's taxi industry five years ago.
US-based Uber launched in Canberra in October 2015, with Ola, founded in India, following in May 2018. An all-female rideshare service, Shebah, also launched in the ACT in February 2018.
Canberra rideshare drivers have reported accepting multiple jobs on different platforms and travelling to Sydney to pick up more trips than they can find in the over-saturated local market.
