Big relief for Bengaluru commuters: Bike taxi service returns to city roads after 2 months

Mangalore Today News Network

Bengaluru, Aug 22, 2025: After a gap of more than two months, ride-hailing platforms Uber, Rapido and Ola resumed their bike taxi service on Thursday, bringing some relief to commuters seeking affordable city commute options - particularly first and last-mile connectivity to Namma Metro and bus stations.

Bike taxis made a comeback just a day after a division bench of Karnataka high court adjourned until Sept 22 hearing on a batch of writ appeals filed by aggregators.

The state govt had banned the service from June 16. Following the ban, Regional Transport Offices carried out drives against ride-hailing aggregators, impounding bikes from and imposing hefty penalties on the offenders. According to bike taxi riders, Rapido was the first to reintroduce the service in the wee hours of Thursday, followed by Uber. Later in the day, Ola followed suit.

Reacting to service resumption, transport minister Ramalinga Reddy said he has directed transport department officials to consult the advocate general on this issue.

A bike taxi captain said: "After the state govt imposed a ban, many of us switched to parcel delivery. On Thursday morning, Rapido enabled the bike taxi option on its app. Initially, I was hesitant to accept bookings, worried that my vehicle might be seized. Though scared, I accepted three bookings thereafter."

Bike-taxi fare up, but still lower than other options: Customer

Another rider added: "People are happy. A customer told me this gives them an economical travel option, as they can’t afford expensive auto rides."

An officegoer at Byappanahalli Metro station said: "It was such a relief to see the bike option back on the apps. I booked a Rapido ride as soon as I got off the Metro. The rider told me he had already completed 12 trips, 10 of them with women passengers. He further said he had received a message, saying he could operate until the next court hearing on Sept 22."

He said he didn’t mind that the fare had gone up. "I used to pay Rs 70, but on Thursday, I paid Rs 84. Even then, it was still much cheaper than an auto ride, which costs Rs 120 on the app."

Transport commissioner Yogeesh AM added: "We will study the observations made by the high court. Further action will be taken thereafter." Ola, Uber, and Rapido were not available for comments.

Meanwhile, private transport operators have demanded strict action against bike-taxi aggregators. The Federation of Karnataka State Private Transport Associations, which includes auto driver unions, urged the govt to initiate contempt proceedings against the aggregators.

Federation president S Nataraj Sharma alleged that Rapido had misinterpreted the court’s observations, and demanded that the transport department order aggregators to immediately disable the bike taxi option in their apps. The federation submitted a representation to the transport minister on Thursday.