At a time when auto rickshaw and black and yellow taxi drivers are protesting the increasing numbers of cars with mobile aggregators like Uber and Ola, Ola has decided to augment its fleet
At a time when auto rickshaw and black and yellow taxi drivers are protesting the increasing numbers of cars with mobile aggregators like Uber and Ola, Ola has decided to augment its fleet. Ola and Mahindra & Mahindra tied up yesterday to raise 40,000 vehicles over the next two years. This will also boost Mahindra & Mahindra's earnings by Rs 2,600 crore.
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The argument by Ola is that there is scope for running more vehicles on the roads as there are barely 30 million cars in India. "There is a lot of scope for cars on the roads although one sees traffic congestion. Mobility can be improved by sharing cabs, and if we introduce more vehicles on the road they can transport more people," Bhavish Aggarwal, CEO and Co-founder, Ola, said.
Although Ola refused to divulge the exact number of vehicles in their fleet, sources said that there are at least 30,000 of them already. "I cannot talk about the numbers of cars on the road, but a majority of them are running on a shared basis," added Aggarwal.
The High Court had recently asked for the basis on which these mobile aggregators are plying, as they have tourist taxi permits. The auto and taxi unions too have been protesting over the growing demands of these aggregators.
When asked about the City Taxi Scheme, Aggarwal stated that they are having positive discussions with the State and Centre. But he refused to reveal details about the changes they are ready to make to accommodate services under the proposed taxi scheme.