Starting Jan 1, colour-coded e-rickshaws to ply on city roads

Police in Lucknow, India, plan to colour-code battery-operated rickshaws based on the zones they operate in to better regulate their numbers. E-rickshaw owners will have to fill in a new form and provide details such as routes, Aadhaar, PAN and criminal history to create a database. The move also aims to eliminate instances of minors driving these vehicles. The city has been divided into 16 zones, and the rickshaws will be seized if they operate outside their designated zone.

In what can be the answer to a menace that plagues the city’s roads, police have decided to colour code battery-operated rickshaws for their better regularisation in the state capital.

Their colours will be defined by the zones they operate in. The move, authorities hope, will help in keeping a check on their surging numbers. (File)

Their colours will be defined by the zones they operate in. The move, authorities hope, will help in keeping a check on their surging numbers.

The novel plan, mooted by the Lucknow police, will be in effect from January 1.

“E-rickhshaw owners will have to undergo a verification process. They must fill in a new form now prepared as part of our plan,” said Upendra Kumar Agarwal, joint commissioner of Police (JCP-Law & Order).

“In the form, the owners will have to mention a maximum of three routes their e-rickshaws will ply on. If the vehicles are found to be operating outside their permitted areas, the owners will face action,” the JCP added.

According to the police, these forms will help create a database of all e-rickshaw owners and drivers. The data can be accessed through a website or mobile app. “This is a first-of-its-kind move in the state,” said police officials, adding the owners would also be asked to provide their Aadhaar, PAN and criminal history details in the form.

16 zones mapped out

For the purpose, Lucknow has been divided into 16 zones, and routes have been mapped out on the basis of the 51 police stations in the city. “As 16 different colours for the rickshaws are not possible, we will rely on colour-combination for the zones. It has been agreed that the new arrangement will be in place from January,” the JCP said, adding a draft for the new system was ready.

Combinations of red and green and red and blue will be used in many of the zones.

The authorities will also be able to regulate the number of e-rickshaws plying on each zone. If an e-rickshaw operates outside its zone, then it will be seized.