PANJIM: Though the new Taxi App has been launched by the State government, digital meters for taxis are essential and mandatory, the Director of Transport Rajan Satardekar said.
“Taxi App is an aggregator service like Goa Miles and taxis run under it charge government notified fares. Taxi operators can log in and log out of the App. It is their choice. However, nobody can be forced to join it. It is like any other App. It is not compulsory. But digital meters are a statutory thing. It reinforces confidence among the people,” Transport Director Rajan Satardekar told O Heraldo.
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Satardekar said till date, 700 taxi operators have joined the new App launched by the State government.
He said the department of transport has paid subsidy to all those taxi operators, who had applied for it.
“For digital meters, the incentives were for a limited period of time. Now the period is over,” he said.
According to the Department of Transport, digital meters have been installed in 15,494 taxis while Vehicle Location Tracking Device (VLTD) has been installed in 510 buses in the State so far.
Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho had in August this year warned to cancel the taxi permits of all those vehicles that fail to install digital meters and vehicle location tracking devices (VLTD).
According to the Minister, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has made it mandatory to fit VLTD and emergency buttons under Rule 125 (H) of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules 1989 and the digital meters for taxis are mandatory as per the High Court order.
The Goa government on September 15, 2023, launched the taxi app through which people can book a cab online to travel anywhere within the State.
