Public transportation services in Gandaki Province have come to a halt from Friday after transport entrepreneurs and workers launched protests against the newly introduced ride-hailing regulations.

Operating under the banner of the “Public Transport Protection Struggle Committee,” the protestors have raised three key demands: full withdrawal of the recently published Ride-Hailing (Regulation and Management) Regulation 2025, clear and firm policies on public transport operation and vehicle import procedures, and mandatory implementation of a contribution-based social security fund for workers in the transport sector.

Kedar Prasad Paudel, Gandaki coordinator of the Federation of Nepalese National Transport Entrepreneurs, said services in Gandaki were halted from Friday and plans are in place to suspend services nationwide from Monday.

The Gandaki Province government had published the new regulation in the provincial gazette on May 15. Following this, transport entrepreneurs submitted a memorandum demanding its cancellation and gave a one-week ultimatum on May 22.

From Friday morning, short- and long-route buses, taxis, and goods transport services have stopped operating across the province.

According to Shobhakant Paudel, a member of the committee’s secretariat, around 16,000 public vehicles in Gandaki have been parked at garages and homes as part of the protest.

In response, the provincial government has formed a dialogue committee under the coordination of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Management Secretary Kamal Kumar Adhikari. Although the committee invited transport representatives for talks on May 27, the protest committee has not participated in the process.

The strike has severely impacted daily life in Gandaki, with locals struggling to access transportation. Protestors have warned that the disruption will continue until an agreement is reached.