Delhi govt bans bike taxis, thousands fear loss of employment

New Delhi: Citing Indian motor vehicle’s law which prohibits private vehicles from being used in commercial activities, the state government on Tuesday banned bike taxis in Delhi.

A government notice in this regards says a fine of up to 100,000 rupees ($1,208) may also be imposed on “digital providers” such as Uber, Ola and Rapido, facilitating such operations.

There has been no response from the taxi apps yet.

A bike taxi is a popular mean of transport in Delhi as it helps people specially office goers in reducing the travel time in the slow moving traffic in Delhi.

Hundreds of people who earn from ferrying passengers on their personal bikes may also get jobless due to this.

Some of the drivers in Delhi who were impacted by the prohibition were interviewed by the Indian Express newspaper, and they stated that they would struggle to get by without the extra money.

It’s not the first time that motorcycle taxis have run into legal issues.

Rapido’s motorbike taxis were denied licences by the Maharashtra state government in January on the grounds that there were no legislative regulations governing their licencing, safety, and fee structures. The company was also ordered to cease operations by the Bombay High Court because it lacked a proper licence.

When Rapido approached the Supreme Court, it was told to go back to the lower court.

Also, some gig workers have criticised these taxis. A Telangana state gig workers’ organisation wrote to the government in December pleading with them to take action against private cars used as motorbike taxis.

In a survey released by Allied Market Research last year, the market for motorbike taxis in India was estimated to be worth $50.5 million and to grow to almost $1.5 billion by 2030.

The report issued a warning, noting that “legal challenges related with bike taxi and resistance from local public transport companies restrains the market expansion.”

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