Auto ride-hailing app has drivers beaming

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: It has been over 10 days since ‘Namma Yatri’, a new ride-hailing mobile application created solely for an auto union was launched in the city and commuters have given a positive response to the home-grown aggregator. Launched on November 1 by Autorickshaw Drivers’ Union (ARDU), the application has over 50,000 downloads on play store.

The app charges the government-set price of Rs 30 for two kilometres and Rs 15 for every consecutive kilometre. Along with this, Rs 10 is collected as booking fee, which is also collected by the driver. Customers can pay either in cash or through UPI directly to the driver. The app has grossed over Rs 7 lakh in transactions till Tuesday.

The application is witnessing an average of 1,000 trips a day. The union had only put out the word of the app through media and has not begun to market it, yet the response has been very encouraging. On the other hand, Peace Auto Union on the occasion of ‘Auto Day’ celebrated to mark Shankar Nag’s birthday, launched their version of a ride-hailing app called ‘Rook’.

After many delays, the much-awaited app was launched by the union that has over 10,000 registered drivers. The union state president Raghu Narayanagowda said that here too the fare is set according to the government set price over which a commission is collected. Earlier, he had said that for the first two months, they would not be demanding any additional charge or demand commission from auto drivers