UberMOTO comes to India; Fare As Low As Rs 3/Km Uber to launch its new bike taxi service UberMOTO in Bengaluru today
By Ritu Kochar
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
After a successful launch in Bangkok, Uber will debut its new bike taxi service named UberMOTO in Bengaluru today. This makes Bengaluru the second Asian city that will be able to hail this service by Uber.
According to the officials, the fares are kept as low as Rs 3 per kilometre, making it the cheapest taxi service offered by Uber so far. UberMOTO follows the launch of Uber's carpooling service in Bengaluru and Delhi. The company launched the carpooling service in the national capital just a few weeks before the oddeven experiment. The launch of UberMOTO could be a precursor to the repeat of the oddeven trial run next month.
UberMOTO serves twofold purpose. First, it will aim to tap the additional revenue streams in one of the world's biggest markets for two-wheelers. Secondly, given the perennial traffic in India's technological capital, the service will help in curbing the traffic, though on a very minimal level. "Uber will start this service since (Bengaluru) suffers from the similar issue of traffic congestion like Bangkok," said a source who did not want to be identified. According to this person, the company sees a huge opportunity in solo bike riders who have space to take pillion riders commuting on the same route. (ET)
Expecting the service to be similar to that launched in Bangkok on 24th February, UberMoto comes loaded with all standard Uber safety features. This means that motorcycle passengers and drivers can give feedback about each other, passengers are encouraged to share relevant trip details with fellow Uber users and GPS tracking is enabled.
Considered the most valuable app, Uber has been increasingly working on making its services available to people from every spectrum of society. Fare as cheap as 3 kilometres is a sure shot sign of that. Not only will it relieve the consumers who pay a little extra amount for short distances, but it will also prove to be time saving. First to be piloted in Bengaluru, it will then be expanded to other states across the country.
However new this idea might sound, Uber still faces competition from startups like Baxi in Gurgaon and Rapido in Bengaluru among others. Ola is also looking into launching a similar service.
The problem that lies in front of Uber now is to ensure that helmets are provided both for the rider and commuter, given the recent regulation by the authorities that mandate use of helmets by pillion riders. Also, since most women commuters will prefer to ride with women riders, Uber will have to keep in mind the division of riders and safety of women, an issue Uber has faced in the past. Over all a smart move, UberMOTO could take the taxi service to a new high.
