Maharashtra has become the 13th Indian state to permit BIKE TAXIS, joining Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, West Bengal, and others.
While bike-taxis are prevalent in some Indian cities, some states are still curtailing their use. Amid growing city congestion, bike-taxis are a convenient and affordable transit option that must be encouraged through a regulatory regime that builds safety and prevents misuse.
Various countries around the world have permitted the use of motorbikes as taxis. Bike-taxis are particularly popular in Latin American countries, such as Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil. Indeed most Brazilian cities have bike-taxi service, although they are unregulated in smaller towns and are under similar regulations as 4 wheeler taxicabs in the larger cities. They are also popular and widely prevalent in many Southeast Asian countries, such as Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam, particularly on account of low costs and quick travel time. Similarly bike-taxis are also popular and widely used across Africa, in Nigeria, Cameroon, Uganda, Benin, Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania.
The legal position on bike-taxis in India is slightly complex. As per the constitution, road transport falls under Concurrent List, thereby allowing both the Centre and state governments to frame and enforce rules and regulations on transport.
In 2004, the Indian government allowed motorbikes to be used as transport vehicles and their registration as such, thereby permitting motorbikes to carry one pillion passenger on hire. In 2016, a committee instated by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways concluded that state transport departments could allow two-wheeler taxi permits, similar to those issued for city taxis. In the light of these recommendations, and despite India not having a central legislation on bike-taxis, individual states can decide on allowing such transit services to operate.
In 1981, Goa became the first state to permit bikes to operate as commercial vehicles and notified 64 motorcycles taxi stands across the state. Actually the bike taxis were running unofficially in Goa in 1970s also, I remember when I went to Goa in 1978 for the first time, the bike-taxis were available and I had used them during my stay there. In 2016 Mizoram became the second state in India to allow bike-taxis to operate. In the same year West Bengal also permitted bike-taxis to operate. Similarly based on the central government recommendation, the Haryana government has permitted the operation of bike-taxis.
In July 2021, Karnataka permitted electric bike-taxis to operate in state with the aim of providing affordable first-and last mile connectivity. As per the scheme, e-bike-taxi operators are restricted to agents and entities exclusively engaged in the business of providing e-bikes to passenger for hire for a journey, and individuals providing their oen e-bikes to passengers to hire for journey. Furthermore, the scheme requires that the name and details of service provider be affixed on the exterior or the e-bike, and any aggregator operating more than 50 bike-taxis must mandatorily adopt GPS tracking of the vehicle.
In Maharashtra, App-based aggregators will be required to pay registration fee of Rs 1 lakh and possess a minimum of 50 two-wheelers in their fleet. The state government’s draft rule require that the fee would be Rs5 lakh for aggregators that have a fleet of more than 10,000 vehicles. In the city of Mumbai, bike taxis will be permitted to operate within 10 km radius; in other cities, the radius will be 5 km. Every bike must have GPS capability. For the aggregators, registration and basic training for bike pilots will be required. The bike-taxi service in Maharashtra will be an app based fleet service and will prove to be convenient to the passengers.
Now we will be definitely seeing widespread protest by Auto and Taxi Unions in many cities of Maharashtra, against the introduction of bike-taxi services.
The success of the cab aggregator business model and the high demand of two-wheelers has improved the prospect of bike-taxis in the country like India. The bike-taxi industry has the potential to generate over 2 million livelihood opportunities. Indeed the advantages arising from permitting bike-taxis to operate can be as follows:
- Providing first-and last mile connectivity
- Generating livelihood opportunities
- Assisting the local economy
- Providing greater affordability to single commuters.
- Providing greater convenience to commuters through quick availability
- Saving time by better ability to navigate traffic congestion
- Help commuters reach area inaccessible by four-wheelers
- Easing traffic woes in cities
- Improving linkage with public transport system
- Ability to ply on difficult terrain
- Ability to integrate with app-based platforms
- Providing demand responsive and real-time services
In the end, India is ripe market for micro-mobility, transportation over short distances provided by lightweight, usually single-person vehicles such as bikes. Most of India’s smaller cities and towns have very ilimited or no public transport, and where available, these are mostly unviable for shorter journeys. Moreover, first-and last-mile connectivity provisions, are generally weak. Micro-mobility options like bike-taxis can fill this gap.
Indeed bike-taxi service already have a sizable presence in the states where they are allowed to operate, and aggregators are allowed to operate. For instance, Ola Bike, which first began operations in Gurgaon, Faridabad, and Jaipur in 2016, is now available in 200 cities/towns. Similarly Uber operates bike-taxi service in 30 cities, with plans to expand to 200 others. Rapido, functioning exclusively in the two-wheeler rental space, has its bike-taxi services in 100 cities in India. It only proves that the real potential for bike-taxis also exists in India’s smaller towns and cities, where people are experiencing on-demand transportation for the first time.
In the end, there is no doubt that commuters will benefit from the addition of bike-taxis to their choices of transport, even as their deployment may face opposition from other transport unions, such as taxis and autorickshaws. Greater competition could improve the quality of travel experience for commuters.
Waiting for your feedback on this blog.
Anil Malik
Mumbai, India
27th June 2024