As per officials on Wednesday (April 30), the Maharashtra cabinet has given a go-ahead to 'carpooling' in private cars through registered apps or web-based platforms in the state, almost days after giving a green signal to bike pooling. The Maharashtra cabinet approved 'carpooling' during its meeting held on Tuesday (April 29). The cabinet's back-to-back decisions to allow both carpooling and bike pooling within a month are likely to draw opposition from taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers, whose businesses may be adversely affected by ride-sharing services.
The Union government's Aggregator Policy 2020 allows pooling of non-transport vehicles, including cars and two-wheelers, with the key objective of reducing traffic congestion and pollution while improving asset utilisation. However, state governments retain the authority to prohibit such pooling. In carpooling, also known as ride-sharing, multiple individuals share a private vehicle to travel together, typically along a common route or to a shared destination. Carpooling helps in reducing traffic congestion, lowering fuel costs, and cutting down on vehicle emissions.
Carpooling as a legal service was under discussion since the last more than two decades, but the Maharashtra government had not given permission for it. But some apps were illegally providing carpooling services on some high-demand routes like Mumbai-Pune. Such operators mostly remained off the radar of the Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) and police authorities.
Security of 'female passengers'
As per the cabinet decision, carpooling services will only be allowed through registered mobile applications or web portals. For the safety of female passengers, the option to travel with female drivers will be provided. On these app-based carpooling platforms, drivers will be permitted to conduct only 14 pooling trips per week, and the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) will determine the applicable rates.
According to transport department officials, carpooling fares will not exceed the rates fixed for comparable types of cabs. These rates will be determined based on fuel costs, tolls, insurance and other relevant factors.
Transport department to make rules soon
A senior official said the transport department will make detailed rules and regulations for carpooling now after the state cabinet gave the nod to it. As per the cabinet decision, aggregators will be responsible for verifying both car drivers and users, as well as authenticating user contact information and publishing service and contact details.
The Maharashtra cabinet's decision also mandates that both drivers and passengers must have insurance. Users are required to provide their residential and office addresses, while drivers must disclose the starting and end points of each journey.