February 23, 2023: Two-wheeler service rides have been banned in India’s capital. Keep reading to find out why!
Two-wheeler service rides provided by Uber, Ola and Rapido have been banned in Delhi, putting unprecedented pressure on an already shaky job network. Bike taxis are an extremely convenient mode of travel because of the cheap fares that they offer for daily commuters.
The ban order has been placed with immediate effects. The Delhi Transport Department had issued this order since they believe using two-wheelers to carry passengers goes against the Indian Law. The Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, states that private vehicles cannot be used for commercial operations in India.
A transport department official told The Indian Express that in the current regulations for vehicles in the capital, there is no provision to allow bikes to be used as commercial vehicles.
As per the existing rules, taxi services are those in which there is a driver and more than one passenger. Under the rule, in National Capital Region, (NCR) only four-wheeler cabs, auto-rickshaws, and e-rickshaws are permitted, and not bikes, added the official.
“It has been brought to the notice that two-wheelers having non-transport (private) registration mark/numbers are being used to carry passengers on hire which is purely commercial operation and a violation of Motor Vehicle Act, 1988.” stated the officials.
A fine of Rs. 5,000 will be imposed on the first offence, and for the second, a fine of Rs. 10,000, along with imprisonment of up to a year can be imposed. The driver’s licence might also get confiscated by the Department for about three months.
If the companies keep facilitating such operations through two-wheeler taxi rides, their fines would be a lot higher, of up to Rs 100,000.
Rapido was found facilitating such operations illegally only a few weeks ago in the western state of Maharashtra and has since been asked to withdraw their services by the Supreme Court.
