Karnataka Transport Department asks public not to use illegal bike taxis

The Karnataka Transport Department, which has been cracking down on bike taxi aggregators operating illegally, has asked the public not to book bike rides on their mobile apps

The Transport Department which has been cracking down on bike taxi aggregators operating illegally has asked the public not to book bike rides on their mobile apps. The Traffic Commissioner on Wednesday also asked owners not to attach their two-wheelers with aggregators. 

Citing illegal operations, the department had recently carried out multiple drives and impounded hundreds of bikes attached to aggregators. Two-wheeler owners were fined as much as ₹15,000 for using their white-board private vehicles for commercial purposes on mobile app platforms. 

Many unions of auto and taxi drivers have also staged protests in the past demanding action against aggregators providing bike taxi services. In a drive that was carried out in the last week of January, the department impounded 120 bikes in Yeshwanthpur and booked cases against owners. 

As per government rules, only electric bikes are allowed to operate taxis in the city. However, the policy brought out by the department has received a lukewarm response.

In addition to the bike taxi apps, the department has also appealed to owners to not attach their private (white board) cars to those companies that received ‘Rent a Car’ licences from the department.

In the past there were many instances of RTO officials booking cases against owners of private cars for using the vehicle for commercial purposes by ferrying customers on both intra-State and inter-State routes.