Anil Kumble and other Bengaluru airport-goers affected as cabs stay off roads during strike

BMTC trip back home today from the airport. pic.twitter.com/jUTfHk1HrE

— Anil Kumble (@anilkumble1074) September 11, 2023

One of the main demands of the airport taxi drivers is that the government should set up an Indira Canteen at the airport and introduce a “one airport one fare” model—one tariff for travelling to and from the airport.

The BMTC operated additional 100 trips to the airport to cushion the flyers from the strike’s impact. A video went viral showing white-board taxis fleecing flyers at the arrival zone. The charges ranged from nearly Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 for a trip to Banashankari, which normally would cost around Rs 1,000.

Ajay Singh, a techie staying in Whitefield, travelled in his neighbour’s car to the airport. Singh was going to Lucknow on a 6pm flight. “The absence of airport taxis, as a result of the transport strike, can really cause anxiety and uncertainty. Moreover, not many BMTC buses ply between Whitefield and the airport, which was another cause for concern. I had to seek help from my neighbour…,” said Singh.

A senior couple travelling to Canada had to walk to the Jayanagar bus station carrying heavy luggage. “Despite the transport strike, we tried our luck in booking a cab. But we didn’t get one. Later we decided to walk with all that heavy luggage for 1 km till the Jayanagar bus stand to board the airport bus,” said Parvati Rudrawadi (60), a Jayanagar resident.

Urmil Bhavsar, another airport-goer, wrote on X, “Auto and cab strikes in Bengaluru today left me hardly able to reach the airport on time. Thanks to @KSRTC_Journeys for the bus service during the strike! #BengaluruBandh.”

Hameed Akbar Ali, president of the Karnataka Taxi Owners, Drivers and Operators Association, said, “With inconsistent cab fares in app aggregators and other airport taxi services, customers find it difficult to choose between them, and the aggregator-app drivers end up earning very less. So we are asking the government to introduce a single tariff for the airport.”

“We also request the government to set up an Indira Canteen within the airport premises and to provide medical insurance to drivers, considering their long duty hours,” he added.

Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy later accepted, among others, the demand for an Indira Canteen for airport cab drivers, and the strike was called off.