Bullish on bike taxis in India: Uber

Prabhjeet Singh, President of Uber India and South Asia
| Photo Credit:
PTI

Uber India is bullish on the potential of bike taxis in India, and senior officials have said that they are working with State governments in the country to streamline operations.

The cab aggregator operates bike taxis under ‘Uber Moto’ in cities across the country.

The Maharashtra government has issued a notification directing cab aggregators to obtain valid licenses for bike taxis in the State, with bike-taxi drivers required to possess a commercial driving license and a Public Service Vehicle (PSV) badge. Under the notification, only electric bike taxis will be allowed, and the licensed bike taxis are likely to begin operations by the end of July.

Earlier, Maharashtra’s Transport Minister, Pratap Sarnaik, had warned of stringent actions against cab aggregators, who operate bike taxis in the State without sanction. In April, the State government gave a nod for the operation of bike taxis. But, the details were not finalised.

“Transportation in India is a concurrent subject. We are very bullish about the potential of Uber Bikes,” Prabhjeet Singh, President, Uber India & South Asia, told businessline.

“We spend a significant amount of time advocating for and explaining the benefits of our products. Each State decides the local regulatory framework. We recognise that the only way for us to grow and bring the best services is through association, collaboration, and giving regulatory predictability for different services. There are new products and services, for example, two-wheelers or shuttles. We explain to the regulators the benefits, feedback from the consumers. Uber Shuttle is a licensed product in Delhi. Certain markets are still creating regulatory frameworks. So, we share learnings from them, and we share our technology details. It is an ongoing dialogue across the board and is cutting through all the dialogues, because each State will have a different starting point. One thing is clear: shared mobility will help solve cities’ challenges with congestion,” he said.

Uber India has nearly 1.4 million drivers associated with it across 125 cities.

New features

The company has also introduced consumer-targeted features on the platform, including Uber for seniors, Uber Pet, Airport priority access and price lock – a feature slated to be introduced in December – wherein riders can lock in fares for their frequent routes by paying a fee to insulate against dynamic fares during peak hours. 

Consumers can also book metro tickets from the Uber mobile application. “Users can book metro tickets directly on the Uber application through our integration with ONDC. After Delhi, we are set to expand Metro ticketing to Chennai and Mumbai, offering a seamless, multimodal travel experience – all within the Uber app,” Uber said.

Published on July 8, 2025