Rise in cab aggregators has hit auto-rickshaw business: Union

Less number of people have applied for auto-rickshaw permits as cab aggregators and registered taxis have taken away a major chunk of passengers, who earlier used the three-wheeler to commute, an union leader claimed today.
The Delhi government's Transport Department had decided to give 10,000 auto permits, but only 9,700 applications were received, a transport official said.
The department had issued a list of 11,227 eligible applicants. They had been asked to submit the required documents at the Burari Transport Authority by September 10, for allotment of the permits, he said.
"But, a total of 9,700 applicants turned up to submit their documents," the official said.

Lamenting that their business had been hit because of cab-aggregators and a rise in number of registered taxis in the National Capital Region (NCR), a auto-rickshaw union leader said that the services had taken away a "major chunk" of passengers.
"The cab aggregators have spoiled our business. They are operating without any registration and have a major chunk of passengers, who otherwise would have used autos," general secretary of the Delhi Pradesh Auto-rickshaw Sangh, Rajender Soni, alleged.

Services like 'shared rides' offered by the cab aggregators are also narrowing opportunities of auto drivers, he claimed.
Cab aggregator Ola recently announced "tremendous" growth in its shared mobility service 'Ola Share'.

"Ola Share has registered a 500 per cent growth in the last one year with Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kolkata emerging as the top five cities using the service," a statement from the cab aggregator said.
The number of applicants for auto permits is likely to go down further with screening of documents and possible rejections on "incomplete or incorrect" submission of required papers, the transport official said.