Karnataka imposes ban on bike taxi service, Rapido launches bike parcel

Bike-taxi aggregator, Rapido on Monday, unveiled a new service of ‘bike parcel’ in Karnataka, after the Karnataka High Court refused to stay an earlier order halting all bike taxi services in the state.

The order came after the Karnataka government confirmed it had taken a policy decision not to permit such operations. Business Standard’s staff in Bengaluru checked that while the ‘bike taxi’ option became unavailable, in compliance with the court’s directive, it was replaced with a ‘bike parcel’ service.

The app also showed a message for its users, “Starting June 16, 2025, our bike taxi services in Karnataka will be paused in compliance with recent High Court orders.” It further added, “While we deeply believe in the value bike taxis bring to daily commuters, we respect the law and will fully abide by the directive. We remain committed to the communities we serve and hopeful for a future where convenient, affordable mobility is accessible to all.”

However, bike taxis remained available on other ride-sharing apps like Ola and Uber, but the rides were not being accepted by the drivers.

The Karnataka High Court heard appeals filed by the bike taxi aggregators, including ANI Technologies (which owns Ola) and Uber, against an order passed in April. Previously, in April, a court order directed all bike taxi operations in the state to pause within six weeks unless the regulations were framed to allow them.

In the order passed on June 13, the Karnataka High Court observed, “Since the State said that it took a policy decision not to permit bike taxis, there was no basis to issue a stay.” The HC bench also acknowledged that the issue involved both public interest and the livelihoods of drivers.

The move by Rapido also invited some reactions on social media. A user wrote, “The bike taxi ban starts today in Karnataka. But the Product Owner at rapidobikeapp has already bypassed the law.” She further added, “Can’t book a ride? No worries – just parcel yourself to work. Call it: PaaS - Passenger as a Service.”

Another user wrote, “Not even 8am, and Bengaluru is choked already. Thanks to the biketaxi ban, had to take an auto. Give me walkable shortest paths to the bus stops, and bike lanes, please. This is no way to create cities.” Many users also blamed the state transport department for its inaction.