* Namma Yatri, Bengaluru’s open mobility app, directly connects drivers to customers
* It already has 4 lakh customers and 43000 drivers with good app ratings
* App is now 100% open to improve transparency, and enable citizen participation
Bengaluru-based auto booking app Namma Yatri has become the world's first 100% open-mobility app. Its vision is to create an open platform where both drivers and customers win together. The product's software, data and roadmap are open for public review and collaboration. Namma Yatri offers a cost-effective SaaS platform for drivers where they receive direct customer payment without any middlemen. Within a few months of its launch, the platform already has 43000 drivers and 3.9 lakh customers. The drivers own and promote the platform themselves. The customers love the app and have rated it 4.8 out of 5 in Google and Apple app stores.
Namma Yatri's open move will build trust within the community and provide collective support towards the product roadmap and vision. It will also enable collaboration with the experts and the larger ecosystem to build a sustainable transportation platform for Bengaluru. This city has over 2 million techies, designers, influencers and marketers who can all contribute to Namma Yatri in important ways towards this vision.
The Namma Yatri app and the tech platform are built by Juspay, which has worked on open initiatives like UPI and OCEN. Mr Vimal Kumar, CEO and Founder of Juspay, said, "Digital infrastructure for mobility is a population scale problem, especially when you see the future of transportation as a multi-modal, interoperable system. Hence, mobility networks should be open and community-driven, like the Internet. While Juspay is known for building user-friendly and large-scale tech products, Namma Yatri adds a new dimension to it - the human angle. Hence, we need to enable the driver community with products and principles to achieve customer-centricity at the level of the Mumbai Dabbawalas. We hope to collaborate with the Bengaluru drivers, citizens and city authorities to create an exemplary system that other cities can emulate.”
Drivers across the city have come together to support this product. Mr Rudramurthy, General Secretary of ARDU, said, "Namma Yatri will be a boon to Bangalore. It is liberating for us, the drivers, to serve the people directly with happiness. We feel the bonding is stronger without any middlemen. Namma Yatri drivers will focus on building people's trust. We are committed to citizens' safety, good service and affordable prices. We will work collaboratively with citizens to solve any existing problems."
Speaking about the initiative, Dr Pramod Varma, co-author of the Beckn Protocol and Architect behind India's digital infrastructure initiatives such as Aadhaar and UPI, said, "India has shown the world that digital innovations and open initiatives like UPI can be transformative. They improve efficiency and accelerate economic growth. I am glad that Namma Yatri, built on the Beckn open mobility initiative, is gaining traction. It has immense potential to improve the lives of both drivers and citizens. Any big change will have a few initial hiccups, and citizens' collective effort can solve it. Bangalore citizens have always been open, forward-thinking and inclusive. Namma Yatri needs their full support to make it big and impactful."
A city's mobility has to be collectively run by its service providers and citizens. A symbiotic relationship between them is crucial. If Namma Yatri is successful, Bengaluru can set a model for all cities to adopt a similar open mobility platform.
About Juspay: Founded in 2012, Juspay offers a technology platform that offers digital businesses and banks seamless, secure, reliable, enterprise-grade payments. Juspay is a key contributor to open and ecosystem initiatives like the BHIM App, UPI SDK, OCEN / GeM SAHAY, and Beckn / Namma Yatri.
About ARDU: Established in 1974, Auto Rickshaw Drivers Union (ARDU) supports the Driver community and educates them on their rights and responsibilities. ARDU strives to raise awareness and promote best practices amongst Drivers to provide good reliable service to commuters.
About Beckn Protocol: It is a set of open specifications consisting of APIs, data models, reference architecture, transaction mechanisms, and standards that enable the creation of decentralized networks. Such networks allow consumers and providers to discover, identify each other and perform transactions with each other without the need for a central intermediary.
Photo Caption: Auto drivers, Mr. Rudramurthy, General Secretary, Auto Rickshaw Drivers Union, Mr. Vimal Kumar, Founder, Juspay, at the Namma Yatri press conference in Bengaluru on March 16, 2023. Namma Yatri is Bengaluru’s open mobility app for Autos..
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