We dive deep into pockets of the city where auto-rickshaw drivers fleece commuters, charging more than Rs 100 a kilometre, making these rides more expensive than a Delhi-Mumbai flight, even as authorities turn a blind eye
A traffic cop inspects an auto at Bandra station. mid-day had reported how the auto drivers here had put up posters with their own fares displayed. Pic/Anurag Ahire
Your ride in an auto-rickshaw in Mumbai might just cost you more than a flight ticket when counted per-km. Mumbai’s autowallahs seem to be giving the country’s most expensive rides ever. If a Mumbai-Delhi flight on an average costs R3,000 for a 1,150-km distance, which breaks down to about Rs 2.65 per km, Mumbai’s fleecing auto drivers have been charging on an average Rs 100 per km. This is four times higher than the official meter fare of Rs 23 for a minimum distance of 1.5 km.
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mid-day visited auto-fleecing prone locations in the Western suburbs and found that autos on an average ply at about Rs 70-R100 per km, per seat at many locations.
Commuters alleged that it is only because of the utter negligence or involvement of traffic cops and RTO that such rackets continue with impunity.
mid-day reporters went on a test drive in Malad, where several auto drivers refused to go by meter. Pic/Suraj Pandey
Malad station to Aksa
Many auto drivers charge arbitrary fares. Some auto drivers take advantage due to the limited access to particular places like Aksa beach in Malad, which sees a good number of visitors, especially on weekends and in summer vacations.
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As per the rule, auto rickshaw drivers have to charge by meter and commuters have to pay according to it. However, at several places across the western suburbs, right from Bandra to Dahisar, many auto rickshaw drivers go by sharing, while at some places they refuse to go by meter and charge exorbitant fares. mid-day also visited several places across eastern and western suburbs to see how auto drivers are fleecing the commuters.
mid-day took a test drive and travelled from Malad station to Aksa beach and Aksa to Malad station return. While returning from Aksa, the auto driver charged almost 85 per cent higher fare than Uber and meter autos.
The number of passengers in autos can go up to 6, as seen here at Gorai, or even 8 (including children). Pic/Prajakta Kasale
We conducted a test drive at Malad railway station at around 6 pm. We asked some of the auto-rickshaw drivers for Aksa beach and most said, “The fare will be Rs 200.”
When asked to go by meter, one of the drivers said, “Now there will be traffic and I won’t get commuters from there. So the charge is fixed and I will not go by meter.” A couple of other auto-rickshaw drivers gave the same reply. Uber Auto on the other hand, showed a fare of R165. We approached a few more auto-rickshaw drivers, many of them were not ready to go by meter.
At Aksa beach, returning to Malad railway station was big trouble as almost all the auto-drivers refused to go by meter and asked commuters for Rs 250. Many commuters were seen bargaining with them but they gave multiple reasons saying there is traffic, we won’t get commuters while returning, etc. At around 8.20 pm we asked an auto-rickshaw driver to go to Malad station and he said, “You have to pay Rs 250.”
When we asked him to go by the meter he said, “No one will go by the meter over here.” A couple of other auto-rickshaw drivers gave the same reply. When we said we were ready to pay, the auto drivers started arguing among themselves and each one insisted we travel in his vehicle. Some even dropped the price and asked us to pay Rs 200 but later, when we reached Malad station, the driver charged us Rs 250 saying, “our rates are fixed.”
The reporter was asked to pay R250 to go from Aksa beach to Malad railway station
Rajan Singh, a commuter looking for an auto-rickshaw said, “These local auto drivers take advantage of commuters by charging exorbitant fares. They are not ready to go by meter. If you don’t have a private vehicle, then here you have only two options - one is the BEST bus which is not so frequent and the second is the auto-rickshaw.”
Borivli station to Gorai
Thousands of visitors go to Gorai every day once the vacations start, as it has many tourist attractions including Golden Pagoda, Esselworld, Water Kingdom and the Gorai beach. The autos from Borivli station generally run as per the meter. The distance is 3.4 km and ideally the fare should be Rs 52 but fares go up to R65 depending on the traffic on the busy station road.
When we reached Gorai Jetty on Sunday, the auto fare went up to R55. There are buses also, which have Rs 5 tickets up to the last stop.
The disciplined queue for autos at Vile Parle station
Once groups of tourists, exhausted and in a hurry to return home reach the gate of the jetty (and are not in the mood to stand in long queues for buses), the dynamic fares of autos start. There were many autos inviting commuters on a share basis. The share fare is R30 per person and there are four persons in an auto. The same share fare is R20 when one takes an auto from Borivli to Gorai.
The fare increases if commuters hire the whole auto. The number of passengers can go up to 6 or even 8 (including children) and the fare depends on the driver. The fare till Borivli station ranges between Rs 200 and Rs 300. Long distance services for eastern suburbs like Mulund or Bhandup are also available and the fare is above Rs 1,000.
Chaos at Bandra Terminus
mid-day had highlighted in January how the auto mafia outside Bandra east station had put up their own tariff cards. The posters had rates of share autos from Bandra east station with destinations and locations for the morning and evening with rates hiked in the evening stating traffic jams, etc. The posters stated names of various prominent destinations where crowds from the railway station usually throng, like Diamond Company, ICICI and BKC due to absence of adequate public transport services or connectivity.
“Why are auto rickshaws not being regulated/controlled in and around Bandra station and Bandra Terminus? Not a single auto rickshaw driver is ready to ply by meter. They demand R120 for 1 km,” a commuter, Praveen Jain, said.
“I returned from Ahmedabad at Bandra Terminus. None of the autowallahs was ready to go by meter. Each one was asking seat wise or fixed fare. After trying for 20 minutes, I had to shell out R100 to reach BKC!” a passenger, Samir Tekriwal, said.
Auto drivers in Bandra west also over-charge customers on many routes. A group of auto drivers stands at the entrance of the railway station yelling at people to catch their attention. Commuters have to shell out R30 to R40 per head for a trip from the station till Mount Mary Steps that should ideally cost between R23-R35. Other local destinations include Linking Road (and National College), Carter Road, Bandstand and Mount Mary. A couple of auto-rickshaws ferry people to Khar Danda and charge Rs 20 per head which is lower than the RTO rate of R23. So in a single ride, with three to four passengers, drivers earn Rs 60 to Rs 80.
Vile Parle, a success story
“We had been facing the problem at Vile Parle and as a solution we got in the traffic police with the help of local citizens/ police mohalla committee members and started disciplined Auto Q during rush hours. No refusal allowed. I had started this in Vile Parle east before the COVID-19 lockdown and manned it every evening 6 pm-8 pm for six months. It was a huge success and commuters of Andheri east used to alight at Vile Parle and take autos for few bucks more. The then Additional Commissioner of Police (traffic) Pravin Padwal had supported this wholeheartedly hence the success. Since then, Vile Parle east commuters rarely face auto issues,” social activist Dharmesh Jhaveri said.
Citizens speak
“The biggest location for auto drivers-fleecing in Mumbai is the route from Terminal 2 to Andheri west where they demand Rs 300-R900 for Andheri west, an average distance of 11 km to 12 km. Taxi drivers are from another world as they demand Rs 500-Rs 1,500 based on distance in Andheri west. Last week, a few people I know paid as much as Rs 1,500 for Shastri Nagar in Andheri west. The cases have become more and more frustrating with the closure of Gokhale Road Bridge,” citizen activist and co-founder of Lokhandwala-Oshiwara Citizens Association (LOCA), Dhaval Shah said.
“All suburban rail stations with businesses and colleges are a thriving hub for fleecing auto drivers. Borivli, Kandivli, Andheri and Bandra are infamous locations for fleecing commuters who are helpless and at the mercy of such looters. The BEST and the traffic department, too, are to blame for this harassment as they have failed to provide essential services and to take action against auto drivers who break the law. Can BEST answer why the very needed service from Bandra station east to the Diamond Market, BKC was stopped and shifted to the bus depot opposite Bandra court? It’s a pain walking till there on dirty and broken roads/footpaths amid the pollution and traffic mess,” social activist Dharmesh Jhaveri said.
Conversation with a rickshaw driver
Reporter: Why don’t you all charge by meter?
Auto driver: “All these autos are from Aksa village and we don’t go by meter. From Malad we won’t get a fare. We have to come empty.”
Reporter: “The other guy who was arguing with you didn’t seem to be a villager”
Auto driver: “No, he is also a villager, however, we all charge a fixed amount of Rs 250 from the commuter.”
Reporter:“By the meter, it will cost only Rs 160 to Rs 170.”
Auto driver: “Yes, that’s the fare, and if there is traffic the meter might go up to Rs 180.”
Reporter: “Another driver was ready to take us by sharing.”
Auto driver: “He might have charged you Rs 150 per person
and taken another two commuters and earned around Rs 350.”
(By: Suraj Pandey, Prajakta Kasale and Rajendra B. Aklekar)
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