Karnataka ban: Uber may halt auto services in Bengaluru

Cab services provider, Uber today hinted that it may halt auto services in Bengaluru.

"The future of the e-hail auto sector in Bengaluru is under a cloud. Currently, Uber and other players in the city are operating under a stay order granted by the Hon’ble Karnataka High Court after the Karnataka state government announced a ban on aggregators for running autos," Uber said in a blog post.

The statement came days after Karnataka’s state transport authority sent notices to Uber and Ola, stating that state laws permit technology platforms to aggregate only four-wheeled cars.

Earlier today Karnataka government also warned of imposing a fine of Rs 5,000 on those vehicles found operating illegally. State Transport Commissioner T H M Kumar also said the ride hailing platforms such as Ola and Uber cannot provide the autorickshaw services till the government takes a decision.

The transport commissioner pointed out that there is no scope for the taxi aggregators to offer autorickshaw services on their applications under KOTTAR-2016. The taxi aggregators will have to give a fresh application to resume autorickshaw services, but until the government takes a call, the department has strictly instructed them to stop booking autorickshaws on their mobile applications.

The department also accused the companies of overcharging the customers. Meanwhile Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said he spoke to the transport commissioner regarding the taxi aggregators running autorickshaw services and asked him to ensure that no company should operate without license. Ola and Uber were not immediately available for a comment.

Uber's response
Meanwhile, Uber said that it cannot run auto services in Bengaluru if the commission is capped at 10% of the fare. "If our costs can not be covered through commissions, we will have to find ways to offload costs that could impact the experience of drivers and riders. In the face of these commission caps, we may have to make the difficult decision to limit Uber Auto to select parts of Bengaluru where the service is viable," it said in the blog post.

"Auto services on platforms like Uber have a different value proposition than regular street-hailed autos. Through platforms, customers have the advantage of doorstep pickups, and no longer have to walk to auto-rickshaw stands or hail an auto off the street," it argued furter.

The current fixed metered fare does not adequately compensate drivers for the additional distance traveled and time spent in picking up a passenger from their doorstep, Uber said.

"Uber must invest to build and operate the platform. We have tech and engineering expenses, marketing spends to onboard more drivers and riders, and many other costs."

"Bengaluru deserves more travel options, not less," it added.



With PTI Inputs