India just made it easier for people to become Uber/Ola drivers

• In Delhi alone, up to 22,369 acres of space can be saved by adopting rideshare (assuming rideshare substitutes for private cars), which is almost 4 times the size of Indira Gandhi Airport.
• Substituting ridesharing for private cars could eliminate between 33%-68% of the total cars on the road and in-turn reduces congestion by 17%-31% across these cities.
  
• Commuters take 1.5 times longer to travel a given distance during peak hours, compared to travel time during non-peak hours.

The Indian government is doing away with the mandate that people require a commercial licence to drive taxis, autos, e-rickshaws and two-wheelers (for delivery). This would be good news for many and may also help reduce corruption in the issuance of commercial licenses.

Up till now, people had to first get a private licence and then wait one year to get the commercial licence. This roundabout way has been done away with, however, the commercial driving licence remains mandatory for those driving trucks, buses and other heavy commercial vehicles.

That said, there are some inhibitions that this move will increase congestion on the roads. Anil Chikkara, an expert on transport issues, told The Times Of India, “In an ideal condition, one cab replaces at least six private cars and an autorickshaw substitutes over a dozen cars since these are on the move and need little parking space.” And by that logic, this move will help ease the problem.

Chikkara’s comment is echoed in a study by Boston Consulting Group commissioned by Uber, which says ridesharing could help deal with a mammoth problem - parking. If embraced, 760 to 22,000 acres of parking space in four primary cities -- Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Bangalore -- could be used for other purposes. In Delhi alone, up to 22,369 acres of space can be saved by adopting rideshare (assuming rideshare substitutes for private cars), which is almost 4 times the size of Indira Gandhi Airport.

According to the report, peak congestion in cities averages 149% which is substantially higher than other comparable cities around Asia. Commuters take 1.5 times longer to travel a given distance during peak hours, compared to travel time during non-peak hours. This is currently estimated to cost a whopping $22 billion per year - and that is only in the four primary cities. Substituting ridesharing for private cars could eliminate between 33%-68% of the total cars on the road and in-turn reduces congestion by 17%-31% across these cities.

According to Barney Harford, COO of Uber, "If car ownership trends continue, Indian cities risk coming to a complete standstill in only a few years”. He goes on to say, “Ridesharing can be part of the solution to traffic congestion because it uses technology to get more people into fewer cars. We can unlock our cities and their full potential, but we have to do it together.”

A few years back, an average city dweller would baulk at the idea of sharing their taxi with anyone. Cut to 2017-2018, not only is ridesharing becoming acceptable, many in fact consider it to be a preferred way to travel. According to the report, over 79% of the respondents from the four primary cities -- Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Bangalore -- who plan to buy a car in the next five years said that they would reconsider the move, should the affordability and convenience of ridesharing match or exceed that of owning a car.

The move will, of course, help Uber and Ola, who have been trying to push ridesharing in the countries. Not requiring a commercial license will likely help the companies ramp up the number of drivers who sign up for their services.