Bengaluru: New mobility network to help autos dump aggregators

In a first, autorickshaw drivers in Bengaluru will embrace an app built on the open mobility network in order to throw off the yoke of aggregators like Ola and Uber who deduct 25% from the drivers’ earnings.

The app, supported by Nandan Nilekani-backed Beckn Foundation, offers to cut off the aggregator to allow direct transactions between a passenger and a driver. Besides ending surcharges and cancellations, the app also removes from the fare the 20% commission taken by aggregators and a 5% service charge.

A passenger who books an auto will get fare offers by drivers and can choose the most affordable one. While sticking to government-fixed rates, the app allows a driver to request a nominal extra to cover the costs of variable fuel prices and traffic congestion.

In the testing phase, the Namma Yatri app is expected to go live in two months. Auto Rickshaw Drivers Union (ARDU) expects to see the app’s launch by the end of October.

“At present, drivers and passengers are at the mercy of aggregators. On our app, passengers can request a ride directly. Drivers quote their fare, which would be 40% less than what you pay on Ola and Uber. Since the driver accepts the ride voluntarily, there is no cancellation,” ARDU’s Rudramurthy said.

An auto driver who doesn’t get a customer will get details when his offer was not taken due to the high fares he quoted: a mechanism that seeks to regulate arbitrary quoting.

Moreover, passengers still get to evaluate the driver’s performance and behaviour through a rating system similar to the one found on other apps. Drivers believe that the democratic nature of the app puts an end to the manipulation of the ratings, a common complaint in the existing apps provided by big aggregators.

Success model

Yatri, the app built on the open mobility network has already scored a victory in Kochi. Developed on the Beckn mobility protocol, Yatri helped the Kochi Metropolitan Transport Authority to bring together different players to exchange information on the same platform.

A mobility expert who worked with KMTA for the app said: “Unlike the platform approach, where profit is the motive, the open mobility approach enables flexibility to customise at a local level. Even in a congested area, people decide the correct fare. As a majority of the passengers agree to a fare, they automatically correct the drivers. There is no scope of artificial surcharges,” he said.

Legal vacuum

After bringing together NGOs and companies to develop the platform, auto drivers are now facing a new problem: lack of legal clarity.

“I wrote to the Transport Department to understand how to go ahead with the app. I was given a copy of the Aggregator Rules 2020 introduced by the Union government. However, officials in the RTO said we don’t come under the Aggregator Rules,” Rudramurthy said.

A senior official in the Transport Department acknowledged the legal vacuum. “The Aggregator Rules of Karnataka are challenged in the court. The Union government’s rules have not been notified by the state. Right now, we have no clarity on registering an aggregator whether it is driven by profit or philanthropy. However, we will be blamed when a dispute arises between the driver and passenger,” he said.