A new set of guidelines notified by the West Bengal government, now, strongly define fares, surge pricing and cancellation penalties for aggregator-based vehicles.
The guidelines for regulating ‘On-Demand Transportation Technologies Aggregators’ (ODTTA), state that the base fare chargeable to customers will be the city taxi fare as notified by the state transport department. The maximum surge pricing will not be more than 50 per cent of the base fare. Aggregators are also permitted to charge a fare 50 per cent lower than the base fare.
Under the section ‘regulation of fares’, the guidelines also specify that the owner/ driver of a vehicle with the aggregator will receive at least 80 per cent of the fare applicable. The guidelines also add that passengers will be charged only from the point of boarding to the point of alighting, and there will not be a charge for dead mileage, except when the distance for availing the ride is over 3 km.
The new notification is also tough on the cancellation of rides. The driver will be charged a penalty of 10 per cent of the total fare, not exceeding Rs 100, if the cancellation is made without a valid reason. This amount will be credited to the rider’s app account. If the reason for dropping a ride is a medical emergency or disorder of the vehicle, the driver will not be allotted any ride for a minimum of the next six hours.
Similarly, if a rider cancels a booking before the waiting time (without a valid reason), a penalty of 10 per cent will be imposed on him. This amount accumulated will be divided between the driver and the aggregator.
Besides listing conditions for “grant of license for aggregators”, the guidelines also specify compliances with regard to drivers, vehicles, aggregator’s app and website, and safety.
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