The Union Home Ministry has announced a considerable number of relaxations starting today in the movement of citizens across the country. These relaxations are valid across all 3 zones – Green, Orange and Red from 7pm to 7am. However, the Government has clarified that Cab services are allowed only in Green and Orange zones and in compliance with this Cab aggregator, Uber, has said that it is resuming services in 27 towns and cities panning across these 2 zones. This includes 6 cities in the Green zones and 21 Orange zone cities.
To maintain social distancing, it has been recommend not more than two riders should travel at a time, besides the driver and no one should be seated right next to the driver. Green zone cities where services have been resumed include Cuttack, Jamshedpur, Daman, Silvassa, Guwahati and Kochi. 21 Orange zone cities where you can now hail an Uber cab include Amritsar, Asansol, Dehradun, Durgapur, Ghaziabad, Gurgaon, Hubli, Kozhikode, Mangalore, Mehsana, Mohali, Nadiad, Panchkula, Prayagraj, Rakjot, Rohtak, Thiruvananthaouram, Thrissur, Udaipur, Vapi and Vishakhapatnam. Services remain suspended in all cities which fall under the Red zones, however, Uber Essential and UberMedic services will continue to be available for emergency hospital trips.
Apart from seating, the company has also issued additional instructions to be followed during rides. It is mandatory to wear a face mask and if you need to sneeze or cough, you have to do so into your elbow or a tissue. The rider can either open the windows for ventilation or ask the driver to switch on the A/C in the fresh air mode only. The company has requested the passengers to use digital payments whenever possible and handle their personal luggage and belongings themselves. Importantly it has also added that drivers and riders can cancel trips if they don’t feel comfortable due to safety reasons. In such cases, a full refund of cancellation charges will be provided, if the rider submits a cancellation request through the app.