Pune: Fatimanagar’s Parimal Sah dreads weekends because he has to take his daughter and son to the tennis coaching centre, barely 2km away from home. Autorickshaw drivers simply refuse to “go the distance” — too short for them.
“Autorickshaw drivers just look the other way and refuse, saying they won’t operate on such a short distance. I tried to reason out with them many times, but failed to convince 90% of the drivers. We have to walk in the heat for 2km,” Sah says.
Cut to FC Road. An idle auto driver checks his phone, as a passenger approaches him. After a while, the middle-aged man starts looking for another autorickshaw.
“I had to go to Ganeshkhind Road, but the idle auto driver flatly refused to go. He said he was looking for a long trip. Two others told me the same. Doesn’t the RTO (Regional Transport Office) or police check these things? How is a person supposed to travel a short distance ?” asks Anand.
An autorickshaw driver hanging around near a shopping centre in Koregaon Park, says, “The business is bad. We get just three-four trips each day. So, why shouldn’t I wait and take a chance for one or two long trips, each fetching Rs300 to Rs400?”
Vipul Pardhe, an autorickshaw driver operating out of the airport, cites high CNG prices. “We have to save fuel. Also, trips are very less. Thus, we look for long trips. “
The autorickshaw drivers’ unwillingness to ply short distances defies logic against the backdrop of over 1.7 lakh three-wheelers registered in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, and when many autorickshaw drivers swear on poor business because of too many vehicles.
Shafiq Patel, the president of Azad Rickshaw Chalak Sanghatna, says, “An auto driver accepting 12 to 13 short trips would make more money than one waiting for long trips. But most auto drivers don’t realise it. I think the authorities are responsible for the auto drivers’ this mindset. Sustained effort of the RTO and the police could have prevented this.”
At present, the autorickshaw fare starts at Rs25 for the first 1.5km. Thereafter, it is Rs17 per km. Uber and Rapido also recently gave its driver partners the option of plying by meter.
“If a rickshaw driver gets 20 short trips a day, s/he will easily earn Rs350 to Rs400. With a long trip, his/her earning would be Rs700 to Rs800 a day. But a majority of the autorickshaw drivers are lazy. Lack of action against such drivers has made them fearless and rude,” Patel says.
The Pune RTO’s recently announced “major drive” against errant autorickshaw drivers is yet to take off. “The drive hasn’t started because many officers are on leave. It will begin soon,” says Pune RTO Archana Gaikwad on April 17.
An autorickshaw driver operating in the Kondhwa area laughs off the “action”. “There are so many autos and the number of those checking on us is very less. ‘Kya kar lega’ (What can they do)? No one can touch us because we have support,” he quips.
“Autorickshaw drivers just look the other way and refuse, saying they won’t operate on such a short distance. I tried to reason out with them many times, but failed to convince 90% of the drivers. We have to walk in the heat for 2km,” Sah says.
Cut to FC Road. An idle auto driver checks his phone, as a passenger approaches him. After a while, the middle-aged man starts looking for another autorickshaw.
“I had to go to Ganeshkhind Road, but the idle auto driver flatly refused to go. He said he was looking for a long trip. Two others told me the same. Doesn’t the RTO (Regional Transport Office) or police check these things? How is a person supposed to travel a short distance ?” asks Anand.
An autorickshaw driver hanging around near a shopping centre in Koregaon Park, says, “The business is bad. We get just three-four trips each day. So, why shouldn’t I wait and take a chance for one or two long trips, each fetching Rs300 to Rs400?”
Vipul Pardhe, an autorickshaw driver operating out of the airport, cites high CNG prices. “We have to save fuel. Also, trips are very less. Thus, we look for long trips. “
The autorickshaw drivers’ unwillingness to ply short distances defies logic against the backdrop of over 1.7 lakh three-wheelers registered in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, and when many autorickshaw drivers swear on poor business because of too many vehicles.
Shafiq Patel, the president of Azad Rickshaw Chalak Sanghatna, says, “An auto driver accepting 12 to 13 short trips would make more money than one waiting for long trips. But most auto drivers don’t realise it. I think the authorities are responsible for the auto drivers’ this mindset. Sustained effort of the RTO and the police could have prevented this.”
At present, the autorickshaw fare starts at Rs25 for the first 1.5km. Thereafter, it is Rs17 per km. Uber and Rapido also recently gave its driver partners the option of plying by meter.
“If a rickshaw driver gets 20 short trips a day, s/he will easily earn Rs350 to Rs400. With a long trip, his/her earning would be Rs700 to Rs800 a day. But a majority of the autorickshaw drivers are lazy. Lack of action against such drivers has made them fearless and rude,” Patel says.
The Pune RTO’s recently announced “major drive” against errant autorickshaw drivers is yet to take off. “The drive hasn’t started because many officers are on leave. It will begin soon,” says Pune RTO Archana Gaikwad on April 17.
An autorickshaw driver operating in the Kondhwa area laughs off the “action”. “There are so many autos and the number of those checking on us is very less. ‘Kya kar lega’ (What can they do)? No one can touch us because we have support,” he quips.
