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<keyword id="20448705" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Waymo" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Waymo" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Waymo">Waymo</keyword>, the self-driving car whiz kid from Alphabet (aka Google’s big parent company), just made a splash by launching its robotaxis in Los Angeles! This means that anyone with the Waymo One app can now call up a driverless cab across a whopping 129-square-kilometre stretch of the city. It’s like having a robot chauffeur — without the awkward small talk! This isn’t Waymo’s first rodeo with robotaxis. They’ve been rolling around Phoenix since 2020 and then hit up San Francisco last year. In Los Angeles, after a short trial for some lucky early testers, Waymo opened up rides to the public. Now anyone can zip around L.A. traffic in style, with the car’s AI brain in control. Waymo’s journey started as a secret project back in 2009 and has come a long way since then. The company’s <keyword id="19967698" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="self-driving-cars" source="keywords">self-driving cars</keyword> have logged over 20 million miles without any major accidents — a record that certainly leaves human drivers in the dust. Meanwhile, Waymo’s competitor, Cruise (owned by General Motors), ran into some trouble when one of its <keyword id="21485769" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="driverless-cars" source="keywords">driverless cars</keyword> was involved in an accident with a pedestrian, resulting in a license suspension in California. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="107634470" title="A crowd set fire to a Waymo taxi in San Francisco, as tensions about driverless tech grow" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>But Waymo’s big moves in the US raise an interesting question: what would happen if robotaxis rolled out in a place like India? The impact could be massive! India has millions of taxi drivers, and many rely on their daily fares to support their families. Not only is the work gruelling, such “gig workers” often earn shockingly less, and at increasingly shrinking profit margins. One source even noted earning only around Rs 30,000 a month while working as an Ola captain from Bengaluru. Thus, a widespread shift to driverless cars could be a serious blow to their livelihoods, especially in a country struggling with rampant levels of inflation. Therefore, there exists an issue of livelihoods on one hand and technological progress on the other, so if companies like Waymo ever bring robotaxis to India, it could shake things up in a big way. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="102751416" title="Sex in self-driving cars: Passengers are reportedly hooking up in San Francisco&amp;#39;s driverless taxis" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>However, on the other side of the spectrum, there are undoubtedly some benefits to moving towards a fully-automated robotaxi fleet. For instance, road accidents cause over 1,50,000 deaths annually in India. Autonomous vehicles,which are designed to follow traffic rules strictly and reduce human error, could help lower these numbers. Additionally, driverless taxis could make transportation more accessible and affordable, especially in densely populated cities with high demand. Furthermore, such robotaxis would also provide a solution for passengers who experience language barriers or inconsistent service quality, as these vehicles are designed for efficient, standardised rides. There is also the hope that they could reduce traffic congestion and pollution with AI-driven routes that minimise idle time and fuel use. Waymo may be rejoicing in the spotlight at the moment, but there are several other companies in the robotaxi race, including Tesla, which has its “Cybercab” in the works, and Amazon’s Zoox, aiming to hit the streets of Las Vegas next year. Baidu’s Apollo is already making robotaxi runs in some Chinese cities, but each company faces its own unique set of challenges. In India, where roads are a blend of honking scooters, zig-zagging rickshaws, and plenty of cows on the streets, introducing robotaxis would require some serious tech tricks and regulatory green lights. Until then, L.A. can enjoy the driverless rides while the rest of us wait to see how this wild technology shapes the future.

No Driver? No Problem! Waymo’s driverless robotaxis make Los Angeles debut — but what could the tech mean for India?

<ul><li>The Indian government has warned cab aggregators over rising consumer complaints.</li><li>The government is expected to issue guidelines to remove unfair trade practices.</li><li>The government has also asked aggregators to reveal their algorithm and policies for determining price and cancellation charges.</li></ul>The government has come down heavily on cab aggregators like <keyword id="1042120" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="uber" source="Orion">Uber</keyword> and <keyword id="6354720" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ola" source="Orion">Ola</keyword> amid increasing consumer complaints over “unfair trade practices” such as surge pricing, ride cancellation, drivers refusing to turn on the air conditioner and more. According to a <a href="https://zeenews.india.com/auto/indian-govt-directs-ola-uber-to-improve-cab-quality-services-stop-unfair-trade-practice-2462130.html">report</a>, the consumer affairs ministry held a meeting with companies such as Uber, Ola, Rapido, Meru Cabs and Jugnoo and warned the companies of strict action. The main issues under discussion included the surge pricing, frequent cancellation of rides by drivers over trivial issues such as the destination and payment mode, refusal to turn on air conditioners in cabs, different pricing for different users and more. Cab aggregators have announced <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/uber-announces-a-price-hike-of-12-for-cab-rides-in-delhi/articleshow/90793725.cms">price hikes</a> in several cities across the country. One of the reasons announced for the price hike was the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/petrol-and-diesel-prices-hiked-for-the-13th-time-in-15-days/articleshow/90655551.cms">increasing</a> cost of petrol and diesel in the country. Some cab drivers have also been <a href="https://telanganatoday.com/cab-drivers-in-hyderabad-to-charge-extra-for-ac-amid-rising-fuel-prices">refusing</a> to turn on the air conditioner, asking riders to pay an additional amount. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Govt warns about strict action" comment="subhead" text="Govt warns about strict action">Govt warns about strict action</cmsannotation> “We told them (cab aggregators) about the rising consumer complaints against their platforms. We gave them the statistics also. We have asked them to improve their system and redress the consumer complaints otherwise the competent authority will take strict action,” Rohit Kumar Singh, consumer affairs secretary said after the meeting. "The authority is likely to issue an advisory to ensure that unfair trade practices by cab aggregators are not carried on in violation of consumers' rights," said Nidhi Khare, chief commissioner, Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA). "The number of complaints is very high and therefore we have called the cab aggregators for an explanation of their policies," Khare said. “We are engaged with the Department of Consumer Affairs and deeply appreciate the feedback provided by them and will continue to provide our inputs. We strive to be the platform of choice for riders and drivers alike and continue to invest in technology and customer support to deliver an excellent experience for them," Nitish Bhushan, Head of Central Operations, Uber India and South Asia said in a statement to Business Insider India "We are committed to continually raising the bar – for ourselves, our industry, and most importantly for the people who use our services," Bhushan added. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Inflated price for old customers" comment="subhead" text="Inflated price for old customers">Inflated price for old customers</cmsannotation> Another issue that has come under the government’s scanner is surge pricing and differential pricing for old and new customers. "It appears that cab aggregators are using algorithms to lure new customers, putting old customers at a disadvantage. This is an unfair practice," Khare added. As per the regulator, cab aggregators are charging a premium to their existing customers and offering discounts to lure new customers. Differential pricing for the same location has been termed as an “unfair practice” by the regulator. Khare has added that aggregators will be called upon to reveal their algorithms and policies that are used to determine prices, cancellation charges and surge prices. The aggregators have also been asked to reveal the steps taken by them to safeguard customer’s personal data on their platforms. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/ubers-ceo-said-hiring-will-be-treated-as-a-privilege-and-inefficient-incentives-will-be-cut/articleshow/91439331.cms">Uber's CEO said hiring will be treated as a 'privilege' and inefficient incentives will be cut</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/how-a-group-of-youtubers-pranked-a-scam-call-centre-in-india-that-earns-18-million-per-year/articleshow/91463331.cms">Here's how a group of YouTubers pranked a scam call centre in India that makes $18 million per year</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/top-profitable-startups-in-india-in-2021-22-zerodha-zoho-dream-11-and-firstcry-in-the-list/slidelist/91484233.cms">Top 10 profitable startups in India – from Zerodha to Zoho and Firstcry, here’s the list</a>

Indian government accuses Ola, Uber and other aggregators of inflating cab prices for older customers

<ul><li>Ola is investing $100 million in scooter-sharing platform <keyword id="5042995" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vogo">Vogo</keyword> </li><li>The investment will go into helping the company buy a fleet of 100,000 scooters. </li><li>Ola is looking to expand its services beyond cabs in India and banking on ‘last-mile connectivity.’ </li></ul>Ola is looking for a bigger share in the Indian mobility market. After expanding vigorously in the cab-sharing services in India, Ola is reportedly investing $100 million in Vogo, a platform for renting scooters. The investment will be made in tranches, according to media <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/ola-commits-100m-to-scooter-sharing-co-vogo/articleshow/67154225.cms">reports</a>. Ola had earlier participated in a Series A funding round by Vogo that was aimed at raising $7 million. While Vogo has been able to fetch a considerable investment from Ola, it will reportedly continue to function as an independent start-up, reported <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/rLno5nzfDNcAWjcq3H9HnM/Ola-invests-100-million-in-scootersharing-startup-Vogo.html"> LiveMint</a>. The company is planning to build a ‘multi-modal network for first-last mile connectivity’ in the country, Bhavish Bhavish Aggarwal, CEO and co-founder of Ola <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/ola-commits-100m-to-scooter-sharing-co-vogo/articleshow/67154225.cms">told</a> TOI. Ola has been working aggressively to expand its reach in urban transportation. It earlier acquired a transportation information provider, Ridlr. Both Ola and Uber have been in stiff competition in the cab-rental services for a while now. While Uber also offers a similar service under the name ‘<keyword id="3269374" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="uber-moto">Uber Moto</keyword>., However, the service does not allow customers to drive the bike themselves but only accompany an Uber driver. Vogo, which has services in Hyderabad and Bangalore, allows its customers to pick up and rent from certain areas. The problem of congestion at India’s urban cities only seems to be getting worse. Services like scooter-sharing may be a solution for urban Indians, the company hopes. Uber users were able to save nearly 40% of their time when they traveled through ‘Uber Moto,’ Quartz reported. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indian-online-car-rental-company-revv-says-it-will-now-let-users-keep-a-car-for-up-to-4-years-for-a-monthly-subscription-fee/articleshow/66827211.cms">Indian online car rental company, Revv, says it will now let users keep a car for up to 4 years for a monthly subscription fee</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indias-competition-regulator-finds-uber-ola-not-guilty-of-charging-higher-prices/articleshow/66542764.cms">India's competition regulator finds Uber, Ola ‘not guilty’ of charging higher prices</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indias-largest-online-learning-service-is-all-set-to-become-the-4th-highest-valued-indian-startup-with-a-254-billion-valuation/articleshow/66474294.cms">India’s largest online learning service is all set to become the 4th highest valued Indian startup with a ₹254 billion valuation</a>

India’s homegrown cab service company Ola is infusing $100 million into scooter-sharing startup Vogo to boost ‘last-mile connectivity’

Taxi aggregator <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword> today declared the launch of '<keyword id="3716887" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola-Offline">Ola Offline</keyword>' across key metros in the country in an offer to tap customers who can't use data services on their phones. 
 
The component will empower customers to book a taxi even without internet. The customer just needs to send his area details to Ola through SMS after which the taxi aggregator will impart driver details to the client. The client will then be needed to call the driver to alter the ride, Ola said in an announcement. 
 
The "Offline" highlight was steered in a few littler markets like Indore and Nagpur, since June this year, it said. 
 
The element will be taken off over all the 102 urban areas that Ola works in, over the coming weeks, beginning with four metros, it included. 
 
The element will be accessible over all taxi classes like Micro, Mini, Prime and Lux.

OLA kickstarts 'Offline' services

<ul><li>Uber-owned taxi service, Yandex.Taxi, is going to equip its taxis with <keyword id="30939" type="TECHNOLOGY" weightage="20" keywordseo="facial-recognition">facial recognition</keyword> technology. </li><li>The facial recognition software will will watch for signs of fatigue and keep drivers from taking on rides if they’re exhausted. </li><li>The company is employing facial recognition to reduce the number of road accidents due to <keyword id="7962350" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="tired-taxi-drivers">tired taxi drivers</keyword>. </li></ul>It’s not uncommon to hear stories of taxi drivers taking on extra shifts to make a little more money. But, it also makes them sleepy while they are behind the wheel, multiplying risks. Yandex.Taxi, the largest taxi service in Russia that merged with Uber last year, doesn’t want tired drivers behind the wheel. So it’s going to use facial recognition to keep drivers from taking on rides if they’re exhausted. The facial recognition technology is going to watch for signs of exhaustion — like blinking, yawning and slumped posture — using a total of 68 facial points, according to <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-08-07/big-brother-to-force-moscow-s-sleepy-cab-drivers-to-take-breaks">Bloomberg</a>. Yandex has already tested the technology by mounting the device on a 100 cars in Moscow and has plans to expand it to several thousand cars in its fleet. Impetus on risk Accidents that involve taxis have <a href="http://ac.gov.ru/files/content/19540/taksi-avariinost-final-2311-pdf.pdf">surged by 25%</a> in Moscow last year. The Russian capital saw a total of <a href="https://rg.ru/2019/03/26/reg-cfo/v-moskve-rasskazali-o-roste-dtp-s-uchastiem-avtomobilej-taksi.html">764 car accidents</a> in 2018 resulting in a total of 23 deaths — and Russian legislators are pointing the finger that taxi companies. There’s already a draft law on the table that puts the Russian government in charge of monitoring taxi apps like Yandex and Uber to boost safety. While this may keep taxi drivers for taking on more rides using Uber and Yandex, there are still other taxi services that will allow them to be on call — like Gett, Taxi Saturn and Taxi Maxim. Lessons for India In India, the situation isn’t too different with taxis accounting for nearly 60% of the traffic on roads. In 2018, as many as 149,00 people died due to road accidents as many as 465,000 accidents were reported. On a global scale, India accounts for 11% of all global road accident deaths. Having regulations in place to curb sleepy drivers on the road could help India achieve its target of cutting road fatalities in half by 2020, as per the Brasilia declaration. “Ola, Uber and private cab drivers, in order to extra money, accept rides at night too, after putting in a hard day at work. As they are sleepy, they fail to pay attention to the road, thus causing accidents,” P Harishekaran, Additional Commissioner (Traffic) in Bengaluru told the <a href="http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/bengaluru/2019/mar/26/overworked-drivers-make-cab-rides-a-risky-affair-in-bengaluru-1955969.html">New Indian Express</a>. Most drivers are working 18-hour shifts to reach targets and hone in on incentives offered by the companies. And, even that isn’t going too well with earnings taking a dip as more people sign up to a part of the ride hailing gig economy.

Uber-owned taxi service is going to facial recognition to keep tired drivers from taking on rides

New Delhi, May 18 () Ride-hailing platforms Ola and Uber on Monday announced resuming operations in more cities, including Delhi and Bengaluru, following new guidelines for the fourth phase of the lockdown. Cab services were suspended for more than 50 days in Delhi and Bengaluru due to restrictions imposed by the government to contain the spread of coronavirus. "In compliance with Lockdown 4.0 guidelines by the Government, Uber is resuming services across more cities in India. Riders will constantly be notified with further information and the status of specific cities through our app," it said in a blogpost. With the 10 new cities, Uber will be available in total of 35 cities in the country. The company had earlier resumed operations in 25 cities. Ola said driver-partners operating three and four-wheelers on the platform will be available in the states of Karnataka, Telangana, Delhi, Haryana, Chandigarh, Punjab, Tamil Nadu (except Chennai), Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, and Assam. "This also brings relief to millions of drivers-partners whose livelihoods depend on serving citizens on a daily basis. In all of the over 160 cities where Ola is now operational, enhanced safety protocols are applicable across every single trip," Ola said in response to an emailed query. In Delhi, taxis and cabs will be allowed but only two passengers at a time will be allowed in the car. According to industry executives, services for travelling between locations in two states (for example, Delhi and Gurugram) will still not be available under the current rules. Ola and Uber outlined steps for ensuring the safety of riders and driver-partners. Ola said its safety protocol includes compulsory mask usage for driver-partners and passengers, complete sanitisation of cars post-trips, and adhering to social distancing norms by limiting to two passengers per ride. Earlier on Monday, Uber announced that both driver and rider will mandatorily have to use face masks during a ride. Also, drivers will have to upload a selfie wearing a face mask before going online on the platform. These companies will also allow drivers and riders to cancel trips if they do not feel safe, including if a user is not wearing a mask or face cover. Uber and Ola had suspended operations after the government announced a nationwide lockdown from March 25 to contain the spread of COVID-19 infection. They allowed only people in essential services like healthcare, banking and media to commute and the restricted mobility left driver-partners of cab services like Ola and Uber with no source of income. After 40 days of lockdown, some relaxations were provided in the third phase (May 4 onwards), including allowing cab services to operate in orange and green zones. Uber started operations in 25 cities, including Jamshedpur, Kochi, Cuttack and Guwahati (green zone) as well as locations like Amritsar, Rohtak, Gurugram and Visakhapatnam (orange zone). Ola had said its services were available in more than 100 cities. The demand and supply had been low in the first few days after these platforms had resumed services. According to industry executives, demand was low in various cities as people were stepping out only for essential travel, while the number of vehicles on the road was also limited as a fraction of drivers logged onto work. SR MRMR

Lockdown 4.0: Uber, Ola resume services in more cities

New Delhi, Mar 22 () Services of Ola and Uber will not be available in Delhi till March 31 amid the lockdown announced by the state government to contain the spread of coronavirus infection. The Delhi government on Sunday said the city will be in lockdown from March 23 to 31, under which no public transport, including private buses, taxis and autorickshaws will be allowed. "Uber is complying with all Central and State Government directives related to its services for containing the spread of Coronavirus," an Uber spokesperson said in response to a query. An Ola spokesperson said the company "will enable a minimal network of vehicles to support essential services in cities, wherever applicable, as part of this national effort to reduce the contagion of COVID-19". The two companies -- which account for a major share of the taxis running in the national capital -- had already suspended temporarily their shared rides on their respective platforms. The Centre and state governments have decided to completely lock down 80 districts across the country where coronavirus cases have been reported. In view of the need to contain the spread of the deadly COVID-19, it was agreed that there was an urgent need to extend the restrictions on the movement of non-essential passenger transport. The districts where lockdown was announced include Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Delhi will be locked down from 6 am on March 23 and continue till midnight on March 31. The city's borders will remain sealed during the lockdown, but essential services related to health, food, water and power supply will continue, and 25 per cent of the DTC buses will run to transport people associated with essential services. All domestic and international flights have been suspended in Delhi. SR SNE

Uber, Ola to suspend services in Delhi from Mar 23-31

It’s been barely three weeks since <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=taxi+aggregator">taxi-aggregator</a> <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=ola+cabs">Ola</a> launched its newest ride-hailing service <keyword id="3291107" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ola-Micro">Ola Micro</keyword> and the company is already beginning to reap the results of the category. 
 According to Anand Subramanian, <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword>’s Senor Director, Marketing and Communications, what Ola as a platform managed to achieve in a span of three years, Ola Micro accomplished the same results in just three weeks. 
 “In three weeks, we have put up a category (Ola Micro) which is already 50 per cent of all of <keyword id="1042120" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Uber">Uber</keyword>'s daily bookings in the country. The rate at which Micro is growing, it will be larger than their entire brand within a month," claimed Raghuvesh Sarup, Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Categories at Ola. 
 
At Rs 6 per km and a minimum fare of Rs 50, Ola Micro is the company’s cheapest offering. Available in seven cities as of the moment (Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Pune), Ola Micro has been garnering significant traction with the company seeing thousands of bookings every day. On offer are rides in cars like Datsun's GO, Suzuki's WagonR and Hyundai's EON when anyone rides with Ola Micro. 
 
Subramanian added that Ola Micro has been primarily introduced for the ‘short distance commute’ sector- thus giving customers an economical solution. He further said that the Micro will be sort of an ‘onboarding platform’ for new users. 
 
“Our data shows that about two-thirds of the people who tried Ola Micro were new users, so that’s an encouraging development,” claims Subramanian, adding that it will be the first AC cab ride at such a jaw-dropping price for a lot of people. 
 
The launch of Ola Micro was a result of the company learning the Indian market, trying to understand the needs of their users and finally executing the idea. 
 
“We understand that India is a group of micro markets, each of which come with different needs. As a brand, it’s important for us to not only fulfil those needs, but also to ensure that every market is taken care of,” Subramanian further adds. 
 Citing the example of <keyword id="2517392" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ola-Prime">Ola Prime</keyword>, the company’s luxury offering with wifi, he says that the Prime was intended to target individuals heading for meetings or official work and he attributed the company’s meticulous understanding of the needs which led to Ola Prime being a runaway hit, so much so that they’ve had to add an extra 20,000 sedans in the last couple of weeks itself to meet soaring demands. 
 
“Our competitions has also tried different permutations and combinations around wifi-enabled cars, but have failed to achieve any success.” 
 
Broaching the topic of competition, when asked to comment on Uber’s claim of being larger than Ola in a month, Subramanian was quick to respond, “Keeping loose claims aside, it’s a known fact that Ola has the majority of the market share- at around 75% as compared to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=uber">Uber</a>.” 
 
Image credit: Indiatimes

Micro
alone will surpass Uber’s India business within a month, says Ola

If US-based <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=uber">Uber</a> is rolling out incentives for drivers and passengers, Ola is also adding new segments to lure more traffic. 
 
While Ola is growing its services apart from the main taxi-booking services, Uber is going all guns to dethrone Ola from India’s largest taxi-booking service. 
 
Reportedly, both Ola and Uber have around 2,50,000 drivers registered on their networks, which is excluding auto-rickshaws and black-and yellow taxis. 
 
As Ola wants to raise valuation of about Rs 33,000 crore, investors are interested in knowing its growth strategy. 
 
"Ola's focus on other services such as grocery, which are not closely related to its core competence of providing peer-to-peer ride-sharing, may prove to be a liability. On the other hand, Uber India has been focusing on building its core business by expanding to multiple cities, stricter drivervetting, and opening customer service centres," Sunil Wattal, who teaches management information systems at Temple University in the United States, told ET. 
 
Uber might over take Ola as the former introduced cash payments also, making payment options flexible. 
 
Experts point out that Ola’s expansion has been tremendous with presence in over 100 Indian cities and generating maximum of its business from 22 cities, where Uber also plies. 
 
Meanwhile, Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal had earlier said that he had plans to enter new phase of growth with innovations and other large scale new ideas. 
At the same time, Uber India’s President Amit Jain wants to concentrate on its core business. 
 
"Since we entered the India market (in 2012), we have essentially been in investment mode. We have already invested tens of millions of dollars into the market as we scale our operations and capabilities," said Jain. 
 
(Image: Thinkstock)

Uber fast emerging the winner against Ola in the cab aggregator biz in India

<keyword id="1042120" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uber">Uber</keyword> and <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword>’s ambitious plans to launch their respective <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=bike+taxi">bike-taxi services</a> have come to a halt as the Karnataka government said there are no rules on how to govern them. 
 
This doesn’t mean that the bike-taxi services have been banned. They have been halted till the time the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=karnataka+government">Karnataka government</a> formulates a set of regulations under the Motor Vehicles Act on how to govern them. 
 Till now, as per the transport department officials said the <keyword id="3273948" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="bike-taxi-services">bike taxi services</keyword> launched by <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Welcome-UberMoto-to-Bengaluru-a-brand-new-bike-taxi-service/articleshow/51236151.cms">Uber</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Ola-hits-at-Uber-with-cheaper-bike-taxis-in-Bengaluru/articleshow/51239417.cms">Ola</a> in Bengaluru last week, remain unlawful. 
 
"Let them (Uber, Ola etc) first go before the Regional Transport Authority stating that they wish to run bike taxis. They will examine the request, and take things forward," transport commissioner Rame Gowda told ET, adding, "We cannot allow a white-board registration bike to offer taxi services. We will have to deal with many aspects including the security of users.” 
 
Uber and Ola had taken advantage of no rules listed under the bike taxi services and launched the same in the IT hub. 
 
In Karnataka, a bike is registered for personal use. If the owner of a bike wishes to use it for commercial purposes, then he or she cannot do that without first changing the vehicle to transport category. 
 
However, in Goa, there is a provision for bike taxi services and they charge a minimum fare Rs 10 and a per kilometre fare of Rs 3. 
 
Meanwhile, as per few reports, some Uber and Ola bike taxis were seized also for illegally running in <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=bengaluru">Bengaluru</a>. 
 
(Image: Indiatimes)

Newly launched bike taxi services by Uber, Ola are unlawful until new regulations formulated

After taxi and auto services, Ola is now preparing to start shuttle bus services and is aggregating tourist and chartered buses for the same. 
 
In a bid to emerge as a complete urban transport solution provider, Ola is expected to launch the bus service in next two months. Like other services, Ola Bus will also be integrated in the same app from which people choose between autos and cabs. 
 
Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder and CEO of Ola, in a statement, said Ola is focussed on building mobility for a billion people. 
 
A senior company executive told Economic Times that Ola will not own any of the buses and use tourist and chartered busses to aggregate supply. 
Reportedly, Ola’s estimated worth is around Rs 15,700 crore, or $2.5 billion. 
 
"Passengers will be able to make bookings by entering the desired destination and time preference; the app will then indicate the closest bus with available seating,” the senior executive told ET. 
 
Sundeep Sahni, a vice-president for new initiatives, would rollout the bus services. 
 
As per the experts, Ola's bus service will expand its user base and boost revenue. 
 
Founded by IIT-Bombay graduates Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati, the five-year-old startup is estimated to clock a revenue run rate of around $450-500 million, and is aiming for gross revenue of $1 billion by the end of 2015. 
 
"They started with taxis and moved to autos. The company wants to establish itself as a transport technology platform rather than be dependent on one mode," Jaspal Singh, cofounder of Valoriser Consultants, a market research firm for transport companies told the financial daily. 
 
As per reports, nearly 1.5 lakh buses transport around 70 million people every day and 23 million people travel by train. 
 
Apart from venturing into several new categories, including food and grocery delivery, Ola is presently working on carpooling, ecommerce on-demand deliveries and logistics. 
 
(Image: Indiatimes)

You may soon be hopping on to an Ola-bus!

<keyword id="1042120" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Uber">Uber</keyword> and <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword>, the two leading cab service providers in the country, have been in a constant battle because of their intense competition in the once fast-growing industry, and now, they have decided to further heat up the competition by launching specific services that target the value-conscious customers. 
 
Uber will be further investing in low-cost riding options like carpooling, bike taxis and auto rickshaw services so that he can appeal to a larger section of the society. "We want to make transportation available for everyone and cabs may not always be the most affordable option for all segments," said Amit Jain, VP, Uber India, about its decision to launch bikes and ricks for its customers. 
 In reply of this, Ola has come up with cheapest taxi-hailing service, called <keyword id="3291107" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ola-Micro">Ola Micro</keyword>, which provides smaller hatchbacks at minimum prices. "(It) will be the most pocket friendly mode of intra-city cab travel," said Pranay Jivrajka, Chief Operating Officer at Ola. 
 
One area where these companies are constantly facing regulatory pressure is surge pricing, their commonly used tool where cost of a cab ride increases during peak hours. It was only last week that the Karnataka state government declared that surge pricing for app-based ride-hailing services would not be allowed. 
 
This has happened because surge pricing makes the fare and other charges higher than the fare fixed by the government, which is against the rules. 
 
The competition has intensified also because of the demand for taxis going down, forcing the taxi app companies to increase the customer base for other products. "In order to tap customers who use public transport, there is a need to give economical and faster option for shorter distances," Jaspal Singh, founder of transportation consulting firm Valoriser Consultants, told ET.

Demand for taxis go down, forcing Uber and Ola to launch innovative services to remain relevant

Taxis cannot work as per their old ways anymore! The government would soon finalise a mechanism for taxi hailing apps such as <keyword id="1042120" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Uber">Uber</keyword> and <keyword id="6354720" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Ola">Ola</keyword>. The mechanism would include setting up of <keyword id="6682479" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="call-centres">call centres</keyword> and permanent Global Positioning System (<keyword id="6362652" type="TECHNOLOGY" weightage="80" keywordseo="GPS">GPS</keyword>) in cars instead of a mobile phone device. 
 

	The government would also devise a mechanism to control the maximum price to be charged by these operators. Thus, Ola and Uber may have to soon conform to such rules framed for radio taxi operators. The <keyword id="335681" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Road-Ministry">road ministry</keyword> has already classified these services as transport aggregators and wants such apps to follow all rules laid down for any other cab operator under the <keyword id="6377804" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Motor-Vehicles-Act">Motor Vehicles Act</keyword>, officials said. "The regulatory architecture for a cab should apply to Uber as well," a senior official told the Economic Times, adding that these apps are like any other taxi provider. The ministry had issued a draft advisory of dos and don'ts to the states on dealing with the <keyword id="2637500" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="app-based-taxi-services">app-based taxi services</keyword> earlier this month. However, after receiving <keyword id="154361" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="feedback">feedback</keyword> from state governments, including Delhi on the advisory, it will issue a final note after two weeks to the states, the official said. 
	 

	The government is also evaluating whether it should do away with the "minimum price" benchmark followed by radio taxis in some states. The taxi apps have been able to take advantage by offering cheaper fares and free rides, much to the dismay of radio taxis, which often follow a minimum floor price. 
	 

	"The states are empowered to draft these rules under the Motor Vehicles Act. The radio taxi scheme is therefore practised in many states but we are telling them to think twice before taking any step which throttles competition," the official said. The apps, according to officials, come within the purview of the Motor Vehicles Act under Section 93 for soliciting services for transport. 
	 

	This section empowers the state government to set rules under the contract carriage permit which covers cabs, buses and autorickshaws. 

	The ministry in its proposed draft road safety bill has also included and defined the term 'aggregators' to bring the IT-enabled apps under the legal framework of the proposed legislation which has been sent for cabinet approval. 
	 
	(Image: Reuters)

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