BENGALURU: With rains lashing Bengaluru, commuters are left at the mercy of taxi aggregators. Cashing in on this, Ola, Uber and other app-based taxi services have again started surge pricing, ignoring the High Court’s recent ruling on the matter. Last month, the court upheld the state’s rules capping cab fares. The upper limit rate stipulated by the state was `19.50 per km for A/C cabs.
An attempt to book an Ola cab during peak hours is likely to be met with a notification which reads: “Fares are higher than usual... Higher fares get you cabs when the demand is high.” Ola also charges ride time rates for each trip plus service tax. Uber, on the other hand, chooses to be more forthright with the message reading: “Surge pricing... 2X fares”.
Left with little option and cash to spare, commuters are forced to opt for app-based services even if it means paying through the nose. Many of them have taken to social media to vent their ire against the state’s transport department for allowing cab aggregators to run roughshod over commuters.
“Wait, I was under the impression that surge was banned in Bangalore. How is Uber doing surge pricing right now?” reads a tweet by one Rahul Mathur.
C Anu, another commuter, said, “How do we know that the surge pricing is within the government’s fixed fare? Also, Ola is charging at least `2 per minute of ride time. How is that fair?”
The cab operators, however, claim that they are not charging above the government fixed fare even during peak hours. Interestingly, Ola has come up with ‘Ola Select’ which promises to remove surge pricing, provided the user pays for a monthly subscription.
While Ola refused to comment, a spokesperson for Uber said, “All fares on Uber are shown upfront and are within the government prescribed maximum fares. In the event a rider is ever charged over the government prescribed fares, we pro-actively refund the excess amount within 72 hours.”
K Radhakrishna Holla, president of Bangalore Tourist Taxi Owners Association, says, “It’s illegal to have surge pricing when there is a High Court order. They cannot charge more than the government fixed rate.” Transport Department officials said they will take action based on complaints from users.