Ola too announces bike taxi service in Bengaluru

Leading Indian cab aggregator Ola on Thursday announced the launch of Ola Bikes in Bengaluru, on the day its American rival, Uber, launched its bike taxi service, uberMoto in India’s IT capital.

Ola announced that it had launched its pilot initiative of bike taxis in Bengaluru. “Bike Taxis on the Ola app will help customers zip through traffic with ease, at lowest fares,” said a company statement. “At an introductory fare of Rs 2 per km and Re. 1 per minute of trip time, Bike Taxis will be available to book through Ola’s app in the city of Bengaluru to begin with. The minimum fare will be Rs. 30.”

In contrast, minimum fare for the uberMoto service is Rs.15, with an additional fare of Rs. 3 to per kilometre and Re. 1 per minute.

According to Ola, the option comes with the same experience as booking a cab on the Ola app, which includes driver details displayed upfront, SOS, live tracking and seamless payment using Ola Money. “Additionally, all pillion riders will be provided with helmets as mandated for their safety,” it added.