How Ogo works
The rules Ogo runs by: how a fare is worked out, where the money goes, who can drive, and what happens to your information.
The fare
Taxi fares in Thimphu are set by the Bhutan Construction and Transport Authority (BCTA), notice BCTA/SMD-08/2025-2026/3009. The fare is BCTA's rate per kilometre, Nu 24.21 today, times the distance you travel. Ogo works it out the same way for every ride and shows it before you book.
For example, Town to Babesa is about 5.7 km, so the fare is Nu 138.69.
- Nothing added: no flag fall, no minimum fare, no surge, no night rate, and no charge for the driver's drive to pick you up.
- Rounded down, never up, to the chhertum.
- The fare you see is the fare you pay. If the trip ends early, it's re-priced to the distance actually travelled. A fare can go down after booking, never up.
- A shared seat is a quarter of the fare, however many people end up sharing the taxi.
- Distance is an estimate for now. Until Ogo measures real roads, it works out the road distance from the straight-line distance, using the lowest ratio measured on Thimphu's roads, so it errs on the low side.
Where the money goes
You pay the driver directly, in cash or to the QR in the taxi. Ogo never receives, holds or passes on your fare.
Ogo earns a commission from drivers, never from riders: nothing is added to your fare. Drivers buy Ogo credit ahead, and each completed ride's commission comes out of it. Credit can only be used for commission. It can't be cashed out or passed to anyone else.
What Ogo charges you
- 10%
- of what your rider pays, on completed rides only
- Nu 0
- on trips with a fare under Nu 50
- Nu 0
- when you drove over 3 km to the pickup
- Nu 350
- the most you pay in any week, Monday to Sunday
Never from the rider's fare: it comes out of credit you buy ahead, which is only for commission and can't be cashed out.
Who drives
- Registered taxis only: a BT plate. No private cars.
- Drivers hold a Professional Driving Licence, the green taxi card. A person at Ogo checks each driver's licence number and taxi plate before they can go online.
- You see the taxi's plate before you get in, and it stays on your ride's record.
- Drivers run their own taxis. Their licence, insurance and vehicle fitness are theirs, checked by BCTA and the police as for every taxi. Ogo is the booking app that connects you.
Safety
- Share your trip: send family or a friend a link to follow your ride live on a map. They don't need an account, and you can stop sharing at any time.
- Report a problem: from the ride, up to 7 days after it. A person at Ogo reads every report. The other person on the ride doesn't see it.
- In an emergency, call the police or an ambulance first.
Your information
What Ogo keeps, and why:
- Everyone: your email, the name and phone number you give, and your rides.
- Riders: Ogo doesn't track you. It keeps the pins you drop for a ride. If a trip ends early, it keeps the distance travelled, not where you were.
- Drivers: also your licence number (seen only by you and Ogo), taxi plate and vehicle. The app shares your location while a ride is under way, so your rider can see you coming, and when you choose to share it.
- Where it's kept: Ogo's database is run by Supabase, on servers outside Bhutan.
- Deleting your account: you can, in the app. Your login, name, phone and pins are removed. Ride records stay without your name, because the other person on the ride and Ogo's tax records still rely on them. It can't be done within 7 days of your last ride, or while a report about you from the other person is open.
A full privacy policy and terms of use are being prepared and will be published here.