Meter Down!

From my experience of living in Mumbai, I can confidently say that at least 6 out of every 10 taxi and auto-rickshaw fare meters in Mumbai appear to be tampered. Of course, the degree of tampering varies, some just with a minor tweak to show a 5-10% variation in fare and some tweaked to the degree of over 100%. How can you get a fare variation of around 30% when you travel the same distance in almost similar traffic conditions each day? It is quite possible in Mumbai, thanks to the tampered taxi and auto meters.

My first experience of being a victim to the tampered meters began in April 2007 when I had come to Mumbai for my summer internship. I used to board a rick from Bandra Station to come to Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC). The variation in fare used to range from Rs.18 to Rs.28. Sounds paltry, but it is not. In such a short distance, the variation under almost similar traffic conditions was almost as high as 50%. had you boarded a rick with a tampered meter for a longer distance, you would have paid almost one and a half times the actual fare, say instead of Rs.100, you would be required to pay Rs.150. 

Sometimes, on scolding and rebuking the rick driver, they used to make a concession....but that happened only sometimes. Most of the times you do not bother to haggle early in the morning before starting your day at work.

Thereafter, I came to Mumbai (for an almost permanent settlement) in June 2008 and the first experience of boarding a cab on a rainy morning from Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT) to Hiranandani Gardens in Powai was a bitter one to start a new life in Mumbai. The fare which I was supposed to pay as per the meter and the rate card was a whooping Rs. 360 and the driver said that he would charge an additional Rs.100 for the luggage which he had to load on the carrier of the cab. He offered me a discount of Rs.10 and asked me to pay a rounded off sum of Rs.450. I do not really know whether the meter was tampered or the rate card which he showed was fake (many a times, cab drivers keep a fake rate card which shows an inflated fare and the passengers are taken for a RIDE). Almost drenched, I was fuming with heat and anger. From whatever little knowledge I had of Mumbai from my previous visits and whatever info I had gathered from surfing the net, the fare should not have been more than Rs.140 in any case. Finally, after a heated argument and a lot of haggling, I paid Rs.250 as a final settlement.

Thereafter, I started traveling by rick from Powai to BKC (via Andheri-Kurla Road), a distance of approx. 10.2 kms and the fare varied from Rs.52 to Rs.90, sometimes due to traffic conditions and most of the times due to tampered meters. I thought to myself, should I start haggling everyday? Unfortunately, I couldn't! 

After a couple of months I got a car and did not prefer to travel by a rick or a cab any longer. But you cannot isolate yourself from public transport facilities completely, especially when you live in a city like Mumbai.

Another encounter with a tampered cab meter of mine finally took place on January 27, 2009 (around 1 am in the morning while I was coming from LTT to Powai. The fare which I was asked to pay using the mid-night chart was Rs. 274.50. While going from Powai to LTT via the same route during day time in comparatively more adverse traffic conditions, I had paid Rs. 89 as the fare. Even adding a premium of 25% for mid-night fare, I should not have been paying more than Rs.125. Also, from my experience of traveling in Mumbai, the cab fare from CST to Powai is around Rs.180, how should I pay Rs.275 in this case?

I thought to myself that there has to be an end to paying inflated fares...so, I finally decided to take the taxi driver to the nearest local police station and settle the case. Initially, the driver thought I was kidding. But when he realised that I was serious, he was willing to come to terms and finally I settled at Rs. 150. I did not want to close the matter here...I was infuriated...How long can we be victimised like this? I finally decided that I should lodge a complaint for this taxi so I started googling for more information about the procedures to lodge the complaint. Thankfully, I have this uncanny habit of noting down taxi and auto registration numbers before boarding them. I lodged a complaint on the website of the Mumbai Traffic Police (http://www.trafficpolicemumbai.org/Complaintform.htm) not really expecting much action, but with a hope (as said, "Ummed pe to duniya kayam hai") that maybe I should at least apprise them (Mumbai Traffic Police) of the common problem which I have faced so many times and which every Mumbaikar faces almost every other day. Fortunately, the Mumbai Traffic Police has sent me an email that they have forwarded my complaint to RTO Wadala where the taxi has been registered and have intimated RTO Wadala to keep me updated of the action being taken in the said matter. RTO Wadala has also sent me an email stating that action has been initiated for my complaint. I hope to receive subsequent communication too, regarding what action has been taken. Thanks, Mumbai Traffic Police.

Lesson 1 - DO NOT TRUST ANYONE! (I've still not completely imbibed this lesson though, but my subsequent experiences keep reinforcing this lesson).

Lesson 2 - Not just the meters can be tampered, but the tariff /rate chart/ card for taxis can also be a fake one with inflated figures. So, it is always advisable that you carry a copy of the tariff card with yourself if you regularly travel in cabs. You may download the tariff card from the following link: http://www.trafficpolicemumbai.org/Taxi%20Tariff%20card.pdf. I have formatted and printed a miniature copy for myself which I carry in my wallet.

Lesson 3 - Try to make it a habit to note down (keep in temporary memory) the taxi's or rick's registration number before you board it. You never know when it might just come in handy. Most taxis and ricks have their registration number on the inner wind-shield or the back of the front seat, so you may note it down even after you've boarded.

Lesson 4 - Make it a habit to file a complaint (it's online and just takes a while) whenever you come across a faulty/tampered meter.

Lesson 5 - Don't lose hope (is the moral of the story)!