Karnataka e– bike Taxi

January 5, 2022

The Karnataka E – Bike Taxi scheme recently received an application. This is the first application received by the scheme after six months of its unveiling.

What is E – Bike Taxi Scheme of Karnataka?

The scheme was launched by the State Government of Karnataka in July 2021. The scheme allows individual firms and private players to run electric bike taxis in the state’s capital city Bengaluru.

Key Feature

The user can avail the electric bike for ten kilometres. An odometer is fixed to measure the distance travelled. Under the scheme, the fares fall in two slabs. They are Rs 25 for the first five kilometres and Rs 50 till ten kilometres.

Considerations

As the response from the private players is not welcoming, the Karnataka Government is planning to revise the fares. It is considering to the set the base price for the first two kilometres as Rs 10. And Rs 10 for every next two kilometres. And Rs 50 for ten kilometres. The license issuance for the scheme has currently been put on hold. The State Government is looking for options revise the features and working principles of the scheme.

Why is the response poor?

The first reason is that the scheme is allowing only e – bikes to function as taxis. And the scheme is not providing options of mobile app platforms like that of Ola or Uber. The second main reason is that the other private companies in the business have attached the drivers with the vehicles. They did not make investment on vehicles. They are earning by providing business to the drivers. Drivers own the vehicles. Here in the scheme, the private player has to invest in buying the vehicles. This is the main reason why the scheme is not picking up pace.

Why was the scheme launched?

The scheme was launched to connect metro stations and bus stops. If it works, it will become the most affordable transport option for the public, especially to cover short distances.

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