Ahmedabad, May 11 (UNI) Uber, the app based cab service provider, today launched UberMOTO, the bike-taxi service, in Ahmedabad in presence of Transport Minister Vallabh Kadadiya and departmental principal secretary Vipul Mittra. With this, Ahmedabad became the first city in Gujarat and fifth in India after Jaipur, Hyderabad, Gurgaon and Faridabad to have this service which would provide a driver driven two-wheeler on booking through app for affordable rides across the city with fares as low as Rs 3 per km, General Manager of Uber India, Ahmedabad, Viral Jhaveri on the occasion said that uberMOTO could be booked through the app same as cabs. The driver of the bike would have one helmet for the customer. At the end of trip one can pay by cash, credit/debit card or mobile wallet. Minister Kakadiya and principal secretary, transport, Mitra shared interesting details about the number of vehicles in Ahmedabad and Gujarat and their usage. They both said that the UberMOTO and other such services which were in the pipeline would be a relief for jams and traffic congestion.Mr Kakadiya said that there were around 40 lakh vehicles in Ahmedabad alone which has a population of around 50 lakhs. Every year around 1.20 lakh new vehicles were registered in the city including around 10000 four wheeler. " I some time feel concerned at the pace at which the vehicles are being bought. It will further increase the problem of jam in the city and the state. There was a limit to broadening of roads. Such bike based taxi services would help to solve traffic congestion. It should also be started in other big cities of Gujarat like Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot, which also face problem of jams frequently. The service will also provide income opportunities to youths," the minister said. Mittra said that other players including OLA were in talks with the state government for starting bike taxi service in Gujarat. " Of the around 15 lakh vehicles sold every year in Gujarat, 60 per cent were bikes. The interesting aspect is that the vehicles are used by the owners on an average of 11 per cent of the time. Most of the time they remain parked. The speed with which the new vehicles were being purchased, it would become impossible even to walk on the roads in next 5 to 7 years. But the bike based taxi service which can be easily used to reach the BRTS and AMTS city bus points and will be very cheap and affordable would help solve the problem of congestion. It will also help the people to reach the metro stations once they are ready to use," he said adding that it took around one year for the state government to give its nod to the service after considering the nitty gritty of the safety of the riders.He also exhorted the women folk to come forward to join the service in large numbers as drivers. Mittra said that bike taxi services were a popular option in south east Asian countries. UNI XC RAJ JW 1534