What’s wrong with bike taxis?

A woman sexually harassed by a Rapido driver in Bengaluru last week talks about the many gaps in the bike ride-hailing system

The sexual harassment faced by a Bengaluru woman on a bike taxi ride has again underlined the vulnerability of women hailing such rides.

Last Friday, Athira Purushothaman booked a two-wheeler via Rapido from Town Hall where she was attending a protest against the Manipur violence.

Mid-ride, on a desolate stretch, the driver started masturbating, and after the ride, he sent emojis and messages to her on WhatsApp. She blocked him but he called her from a different number. She raised a complaint on the app, and later narrated her ordeal on Twitter. By Saturday, police had arrested the rider, Kuruvettappa.

The incident has got Athira, who works with an NGO as a sexual and reproductive health and rights activist, thinking of ‘gaps’ in the app-based ecosystem. She outlines them.

Do they run a background check while hiring? And can a rider qualify just by furnishing a driving licence?
A man, listed as a rider on Rapido and Swiggy, said no background checks were done on him. An autorickshaw driver had to submit his driving licence and vehicle’s insurance and registration certificates while onboarding on Ola and Uber. “No police check happened,” he said.

Do they undergo gender sensitisation workshops?
A Rapido rider said he has never been called to the company’s office.

Does Rapido have a protocol if a registered vehicle breaks down?

Athira says Kuruvettappa arrived on a bike the number of which was different from the one assigned on the app. “He had given the registered bike for servicing, he said. I asked him to show his app, and I could see my booking details, and pick-up and drop points. That’s why I went ahead with the ride,” she said.

Is there a mechanism to prevent a rider from accessing another’s account?

“The customer support told me they had deplatformed and blacklisted the captain. This (assigned) captain called to request me to withdraw my complaint because it was not him but his friend who had come to pick me up,” Athira said. Kuruvettappa was this captain’s roommate and had impersonated him.

Is it easy for riders to bypass features that protect customer identity?
While aggregators have an in-call app feature, Kuruvettappa messaged Athira on the app, asking her to call his personal mobile number. She did not heed his advice and called using the app. When the call did not go through, she used his phone number. “That’s how he got hold of my number and started messaging me,” she said.

Since her tweet garnered traction, Athira says other women have shared stories of how captains texted or called them and said things like “I came for the ride because I liked the sound of your voice.”

Customer support informed Athira of the SOS button in the app, and offered legal assistance. Responding over email, Rapido team advised users to decline the ride if vehicle and captain details don’t match assigned details. They plan to introduce face identification and daily registration certification (RC), they wrote.

Are they vetting?

C K Baba, DCP of Bengaluru’s southeast division, says such incidents call for an urgent re-evaluation of safety protocols in the bike taxi industry. “What vetting process do these companies follow while hiring riders?” he asks.

Last year, Baba says, the key accused in the alleged gangrape of a 23-year-old woman from Electronics City was a Rapido driver and he had a criminal history.

His other concerns: Are the drivers given gender sensitisation workshops to be respectful to female users? Why don’t they hire female drivers, a safer choice for women? What extra measures do they take for late-night rides? Inadequate data security measures employed by these companies may expose users to stalking and harassment risks, as their phone numbers and personal information could be accessed, the DCP warns.

Baba says distressed users should call 112 after the ride or WhatsApp the police discreetly on 94808 01000.

Beleaguered bike taxis

A ban on bike taxi operators was among the many demands of the July 27 strike planned by transport bodies in the city. The protest has been put on hold.

Maharashtra and Delhi suspended bike taxis this year.

The Karnataka Electric Bike Taxi Scheme, 2021, only allows the operation of e-bike taxis. But petrol-run bike taxis continue to ply in Bengaluru because the High Court, in an interim order, has directed the transport department to not take any coercive action, following a petition by Rapido.