Namma Yatri: Open Mobility Taking Over Ola & Uber in Bengaluru

But now, in a city known for its tech prowess and chaotic traffic, ride-hailing survives an electrifying but hushed revolution. Namely, Bengaluru has seen the rise of a homegrown, people-first mobility solution-Namma Yatri-a service that had been increasingly dominated by large multinationals such as Ola and Uber. What began as a government initiative has rapidly emerged into a powerful movement, shaking up the duopoly and offering a compelling alternative rooted in transparency, fairness, and community-driven innovations.

Namma Yatri auto in Bengaluru, representing the city’s shift toward driver-friendly, open mobility solutions.

Namma Yatri stands for "Our Ride"-another ride-booking application. Built upon principles that give drivers freedom in managing their income, where users receive ethical prices, it began with the idea of open mobility. Developed by Juspay with the Auto Rickshaw Drivers Union and supported by the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), this app operates with its “no commission cuts, surge pricing, and mysterious algorithms.” Simply put, the ride is the fare that the driver actually earns and passengers pay what is fair-utterly surprising, with no middlemen or greedy platforms in between.

For several years now, auto drivers in Bengaluru have been voicing their frustration with the traditional aggregators. The relationship was tense, with high dealer commissions, no customer support, and regular fines. Namma Yatri had altered this model. Here drivers sign up free of charge, define their availability, and retain 100% of the fare. App is charging a tiny subscription once from the driver but nothing on per ride basis, creating an ecosystem that just cannot be win-win and is difficult to ignore.

And they also respond very positively. The app is at par with any global application in that its user experience provides real-time tracking, QR code booking, and digital payment. It is knowing, however, that your fare goes directly to the driver that makes the difference for some. There's never going to be surge pricing in high demand hours, mysteriously canceled rides, or that black hole of customer service. Moreover, the app allows riders to write reviews for accountability and quality assurance. 

What Namma Yatri assures as an open source, interoperable technology platform is India in its grander vision of digital public infrastructure. Not just an app, it's a platform that other cities could adopt, modify, and scale. As Indian metropolitans increasingly face urban mobility questions, something like this shows that technology doesn't need to be exploitative to be effective. 

Initially, one could see its effects. The booming downloads run into laks. Daily thousands of rides are already eating into the Bengaluru market share for Namma Yatri from Ola and Uber. But it isn't just about the figures; this is also about trust. More than ever, passengers are aware of how rides are born and split into fares and want their money to go to the people who actually do the work. For the first time, auto drivers are calling it their platform, not just one they work for.

Future urban transport might not lie in monopolies but in open systems that empower everyone, as Namma Yatri proclaims. How quickly other cities will follow suit upon the expansion of the app's features and coverage isn't questionable. In Bangalore, the roads are still clogged, but one way or another, they are becoming clear for fairer, freer mobility.