Bike taxis off the road again in Bengaluru amid legal uncertainty
The court has given the state one month to decide whether it will draft rules to regulate bike taxi operations.
| Photo Credit:
ALLEN EGENUSE J
Three days after resuming bike taxi services in Bengaluru, mobility players have once again pulled back. While Uber and Ola have withdrawn their services, Rapido – the largest bike taxi operator, continues to operate. Bike taxis had resumed operations in the state on August 21.
This follows the Karnataka High Court’s clarification that it had not permitted bike taxi services to resume and stated that the state government is free to take action against aggregators under existing law. A division bench headed by Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru also directed authorities not to “harass” individual vehicle owners.
The court has given the state one month to decide whether it will draft rules to regulate bike taxi operations.
Meanwhile, the Bike Taxi Welfare Association met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi on Saturday, seeking policy support for the sector. The association, which has 12,000 members in Bengaluru and represents over six lakh bike taxi drivers across Karnataka, urged the government to allow bike taxis to operate until a formal policy is framed.
In an official statement, Association President Adi Narayan said, “Rahul Gandhi patiently heard the delegation and assured his support to bike taxi drivers, most of them young workers struggling to make ends meet.” The association presented three demands- urge the Karnataka government to draft policies regulating bike taxis, allow bike taxis to continue its operations in the state, and no punitive action be taken till the rules are framed.
The ban on bike taxis was imposed on June 16, leaving many commuters—especially short-distance travellers, without an affordable option. Users have since reported a surge in fares for auto-rickshaws and cabs. The ban also came after a series of fare hikes, including the Namma Metro fare revision on February 9 and increases across four state-run bus corporations effective January 5.
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Published on August 24, 2025
