Union Home Minister Amit Shah officially launched Bharat Taxi in New Delhi on Thursday. The new ride-hailing platform, aimed at strengthening the cooperative sector, will serve as an alternative to popular private cab aggregators like Uber, Ola, and Rapido. The drivers of Bharat Taxi, called ‘Sarathis’ are co-owners and members of the new cooperative, which will potentially resolve the fare hike issue during peak hours by offering a simpler pricing system.
Specialities and features of Bharat Taxi
Bharat Taxi is run and managed by Sahakar Taxi Cooperative Limited and boasts a distinct model with each driver holding 5 shares in the cooperative model. This driver-friendly revenue model helps Sarathis earn more than Ola, Uber, and Rapido as they do not have to pay commissions per ride. They just pay a fixed daily fee of Rs 30 to access the app, in contrast to other private cab aggregators.
One of the central promises to drivers of Bharat Taxi is higher earnings. Under the zero commission model, they will receive over 80% of the total fare, while the remaining 20% will be used for operations and welfare.
Bharat Taxi operates on a surge-free pricing model. It offers a direct profit distribution among the sarathis. However, in Uber and Ola, fares vary based on demand and the availability of drivers in real-time. Prices shown on the app to riders often include additional fees like tolls, making the total trip fare dynamically higher.
Does Bharat Taxi offer lower fares than its competitors?
According to News18, here’s what fare was charged on Bharat Taxi, Uber, and Ola for a journey between Noida Sector-98 to Patparganj.
- In the Bharat Taxi app, the bike fares were higher compared to Uber and Ola around 4.09 pm on Thursday.
- In Bharat Taxi, the cab (economy) fares were slightly higher than Uber but lower than Ola.
- In Bharat Taxi, Sedan fares were also slightly higher compared to Ola and Uber.
- Around 7 PM, during the rush hours, Bharat Taxi’s bike fares were significantly higher than Uber and Ola.
- Cab fares in Bharat Taxi were varied a little, although Uber showed fares slightly lower. Meanwhile, in Ola, fares were higher than both platforms.
- Sedan fares in Bharat Taxi were higher compared to Uber but lower compared to Ola.
