Bengaluru man says car drivers forcibly stopped him from using Rapido bike taxis: ‘moron behavior’

A Bengaluru man claimed that car drivers outside Jalahalli Metro station forcibly stopped him from using Rapido bike taxis on Saturday evening. Calling it “moron behavior”, a weather enthusiast, who runs the handle Karnataka Weather on X, alleged that the drivers mistreated him and made him cancel three bike rides. The Bangalore police have taken note of the incident.

In his post on X, the man said he had booked a bike taxi via Rapido on Saturday evening in front of the metro station. The journey was by electric bike and when the cyclist arrived, motorists in the area started abusing him and chased him away. “Realizing that electric bike taxis were banned in the city, I booked another ride through Rapido, and this time I bought a Honda bike which is not electric,” he wrote. “When he came to pick me up, the motorists again forcefully asked him to cancel the trip and did not allow me to do so.”

He then looked at news articles about the ban on electric bike taxis and booked another ride on Rapido. “This time I was ready with my cell phone to take photos and videos of the thugs. But when the pilot arrived and we were about to leave, they came back, forced me off the bike and started insulting us. I told them, only electric bike taxis are banned, but not normal bikes. They said: “Don’t talk to us about the rules… we know them better than you.” They didn’t allow me to take videos and photos,” the meteorologist said.

Brutal behavior of motorists at Jalahalli Metro station, Bangalore this evening
When leaving the metro station, I booked a bike taxi via @rapidobikeapp. The first ride I took was on an e-bike and e-bike. when the biker came to pick me up, the motorists started to…

— Karnataka Weather (@Bnglrweatherman) March 9, 2024

He then asked Bengaluru police, city traffic police and Jalahalli traffic police to look into the matter. In response to this post, Bengaluru Police asked him to share his details via DM.

Meanwhile, several other X users have also reported similar experiences with car drivers outside subway stations.

“This is a regular scene in all metro stations! Neither motorists are willing to drive on the meter, nor are they allowing people to book! It is a very difficult situation but no action is being taken” , wrote Mr. Ravan (@thereal_ravan).

Another X user, Rakesh K (@rakeshkannath) commented, “In the backyard of Kadugodi Traffic Police Station and Kadugodi Metro Station, motorists are openly demanding Rs 100 for journeys less of 3 km. How many times to complain? This falls on deaf ears. This is of no use… no strict action is taken.

Read more: Karnataka e-bike taxi row: Unions support state government; Rapido says its operations will continue