Popular ride-hailing services Uber and Ola have restarted operations in Mumbai for essential services and trips to and from the airport. As of now, cabs can be found in Terminal 2 (T2) of the Mumbai Airport, making lives somewhat easier for those coming back into the city via flights.
The social distancing rules still apply, and cabs are not allowed to take more than two passengers at a time. Cabs will go through mandatory fumigation via disinfectants. However, it’s unclear if this will be done after each trip or at the end of each day. Additionally, people looking for cabs within the city will be alerted that the cabs can be used for essential services only, which can also include grocery shopping.
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However, autorickshaws and kaali-peeli cabs are still not allowed to run in large numbers. The local authorities recently allowed the safe functioning of rickshaws and kaali peelis around busy railway stations across the city.
The drivers have urged the authorities to allow the running of local taxis and rickshaws near commercial office areas as they can provide crucial last-mile connectivity that other modes of transport (except ride-hailing apps) cannot offer.
Since March, the income of kaali-peelis and rickshaws have been dwindling before services were completely shut down. At one point, taxi drivers were reporting up to 50% loss of revenue on a day-to-day basis.
With Mumbai gradually reopening the city, it shouldn’t take too long until taxis and rickshaws are allowed to run on the streets more freely. However, the authorities will also have to ensure that proper sanitization and social distancing is maintained to avoid the risk of a new wave of coronavirus cases in the city.
Mumbai’s coronavirus cases tally now stands at 51,100 while Maharashtra breached the 90,000 mark as of the recent figures.
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