The ministry has advised all states to adopt the revised guidelines within 3 months.

New Delhi: The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has permitted ride-hailing platforms like Uber, Ola, and Rapido to charge up to twice the base fare during peak hours, as per the newly released Motor Vehicles Aggregator Guidelines 2025. This is a shift from the earlier cap of 1.5 times the base fare. During non-peak hours, the fare can go as low as 50% below the base fare.

The base fare, as notified by respective state governments for each category of vehicle, will now apply to a minimum distance of 3 kilometres to compensate for what the ministry terms “dead mileage”, the distance and fuel consumed while reaching the passenger.

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The ministry has advised all states to adopt the revised guidelines within three months. The guidelines also outline cancellation penalties: a 10% penalty (capped at Rs 100) will apply to either the driver or the passenger if the ride is cancelled without a valid reason recognised by the aggregator.

The guidelines set the aggregator licence fee at Rs 5 lakh, valid for five years. A centralised single-window portal will be developed for licence applications. Aggregators must ensure that vehicles onboarded are not older than eight years and that all vehicles have functional Vehicle Location and Tracking Devices (VLTD) at all times.

To improve user safety and experience, the guidelines require aggregators to:

• Appoint a Grievance Officer

• Set up a 24×7 call centre with language support in English and the state’s official language.

• Monitor route deviations in real time and alert control rooms if necessary.

• Ensure drivers are covered under health insurance of at least Rs 5 lakh and term insurance of Rs 10 lakh.

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The guidelines also mandate inclusion targets for electric vehicles (EVs) in aggregator fleets, to be set by appropriate state or environmental authorities.

These updates come as a significant revision to the 2020 Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, reflecting the rapid evolution in India’s shared mobility sector, including growing demand for flexible options, increased use of EVs, and expanded services such as auto-rickshaw and bike-sharing.