Meter down: city auto-drivers taking commuters for a ride

Despite the new autorickshaw fares already in place,a number of autorickshaw drivers,especially on the outskirts of the city as well as in Pimpri-Chinchwad region do not charge as per the meters and demand double the amount.

Despite the new autorickshaw fares already in place,a number of autorickshaw drivers,especially on the outskirts of the city as well as in Pimpri-Chinchwad region do not charge as per the meters and demand double the amount. When opposed,the autorickshaw drivers are rude and use foul language to intimidate the commuters.

Sharing her experience,a commuter Pratibha Salvi said,the other day,I wanted to travel from Rahatani to Sangavi and hence stopped an autorickshaw. I thought the driver would charge as per the meter. But midway,he told me he would charge Rs 100. When I resisted,he stopped the rickshaw in the middle and then started arguing with me. Since it was raining heavily and I was in a hurry,I relented and had to cough up the money contrary to my wishes

When I went to an rickshaw stand in Hinjewadi in order to go to Pimpri,the drivers standing in the queue said that they would not charge fare as per the meter. When I asked them what was the use of the meters,they starting speaking rudely. The RTO authorities do not take action against such rickshaw drivers, another commuter Rahul Mahajan said.

RTA member Baba Shinde said,It is true the autorickshaw drivers in the Pimpri-Chinchwad area do not charge money as per the meter. We have been receiving a number of complaints from the commuters and residents in the area. We were going to address the issue in the RTA meeting,however,due to the some other pressing issues,we could not do so. A number of people have also pointed out the rudeness of the rickshaw drivers.

A joint action by the traffic police and RTO is necessary to stop such cases. This is one issue that is high on our agenda, he said.

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