Ola Stripped Of Its License In London – Free PDF Download

What has happened?

• Ola, a ride-hailing app that competes with Uber, has been stripped of its license
• By London’s transport regulator- Transport for London (TfL) over public safety concerns.

About ola services

• Ola serves over 250 cities across India, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK.
• The firm launched its operations in the UK starting with Cardiff in August 2018.
• It had been steadily expanding across the country and was serving millions of users across Birmingham, Liverpool, Exeter, Reading, Bristol, Bath, Coventry, and Warwick.
• Ola was granted a 15-month licence on July 4, 2019.
• Ola has been operating in London sinceFebruary 2020.
• The licence expired on October 3, 2020.

So what happened now?

• Ola was involved in a number of failures that had potential public safety consequences.
• These included historic breaches of the licensing regime that led to unlicensed drivers and vehicles undertaking more than 1,000 passenger trips on behalf of Ola.
• There was also a failure to draw these breaches to TfL’s attention immediately when they were first identified.
• Helen Chapman, TfL’s director of licensing, regulation and charging, said in a statement:
• “Our duty as a regulator is to ensure passenger safety.
• Through our investigations we discovered that flaws in Ola’s operating model have led to the use of unlicensed drivers and vehicles in more than 1,000 passenger trips, which may have put passenger safety at risk.”

So will it cease to operate?

• Applicants have a right to appeal a decision not to grant a licence to a magistrates’ court within 21 days.
• Ola can continue to operate pending the outcome of any appeal process.
• But TfL has said, it will closely scrutinise the company to ensure passengers safety is not compromised.

• “The operations will continue as we appeal in this time, and we can continue to operate until the decision of the appeal in court.
• So nothing changes for customers and drivers,” said a company source.
• “It is important to note for riders, drivers and TfL, that all the issues have been corrected and we are confident we can demonstrate this on appeal.”
• The Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998,
• Private hire operators must meet rigorous regulations, and demonstrate to TfL that they do so, in order to operate.
• Before granting a licence, TfL must be satisfied that an operator is fit and proper to hold a private hire operator’s licence.

What was uber case?

• Transport for London stripped Uber of its license for a second time last year, citing a “pattern of failures” that had put passengers at risk.
• The watchdog said a glitch in Uber’s systems allowed unauthorized drivers to upload their photos to other driver accounts and fraudulently pick up passengers for at least 14,000 journeys.
• Uber was granted with a new 18-month license following the decision.

conclusion

• Home to over 9 million people,
• London represents a huge opportunity for taxi app companies.
• They’ve spent millions of dollars trying to lure passengers to their platforms.

Q) Which of the following statements regarding National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) is correct?

1. It is a fully owned govt company under  Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
2. It was setup in the year 2000.
3. It is involved in construction of big tunnel projects in places like- Zoji-la, Shinkun La.

1. 1 & 2 only
2. 2 & 3 only
3. 1 & 3 only
4. All of the above

Latest Burning Issues | Free PDF

Sharing is caring!