Women’s bicycle taxi rider urges transport minister to reconsider ban

Bangalore woman bicycle driver. |Picture source: Special arrangement

A group of 40 women bicycle taxi drivers filed a petition with Karnataka Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy on Tuesday urging the government to reconsider the statewide ban on bicycle taxi services.

The petition follows a directive of the Karnataka High Court on April 2, requiring all bicycle taxi operations to be stopped. The Karnataka High Court directed Rapido, Ola and Uber to stop operating their bicycle taxi services within six weeks.

The court clarified that Rapido, Ola and Uber cannot act as bicycle taxi aggregators unless the state government is under the relevant guidelines of Article 93 of the Motor Vehicle Act of 1988 and under the relevant rules constituted by that provision.

“Women riders, many of whom rely solely on bicycle taxis livelihoods, call for the introduction of appropriate regulatory frameworks. We also seek temporary licensing from temporary operators and seek stakeholder consultations to develop platforms for inclusive and sustainable policies.”