Mumbaikars: Why pay more for rickety ride in smelly cabs?

MUMBAI: Commuters have come up with a reason why they are against a big rise in taxi fares. The point is that half of the taxis on city roads are old and rickety and travelling in them is quite often an ordeal. Given such bad service, commuters feel they should not pay more than they already are.
The one-member Hakim Committee, set up to look into the fare matter, heard the complaint and took into consideration the presence of old taxis before giving its fare recommendation.This is why it ordered a second round of survey on taxis, specially old Fiats, a source said. The exercise was undertaken on Tuesday, the sample size being 30.
The results showed that the mileage for an old taxi was 12km/kg of CNG as compared to 20km/kg for a new Wagon-R. The productive distance (run with passengers) was 80-100km per day, showing that the daily earnings of a taxi driver would be in the Rs 800-1,000 range, a source said. Also, a taxi made five to seven trips a day.
Apprised of the findings, Pratik Desai, a regular commuter, said, “If you say the cost of maintaining an old taxi is high and it gives a low mileage (12km/kg), this is no justification to increase fares. The Hakim panel should study the ground realities and ensure that we (commuters) get value for money. Don’t give a fare hike unless all taxis are in good condition.”
Consumer activist Sunil Mone said the panel should consider “quality of service” as an important factor. “If the quality is poor--such as travelling in cabs with tattered/stained seat covers and smelly interiors--why should we pay more to the driver?”
Shirish Deshpande of Mumbai Grahak Panchayat said he had made a submission before the panel, insisting on that passenger feedback and drivers’ quality of service should be considered on priority before raising fares for either autos or taxis.
During the survey, RTO officials learnt that most owners of old taxis did a shoddy job when it came to repairing their vehicles. “They use substandard spare parts and don’t spend much on repairs. Also, the cabs are not maintained properly and most drivers just wait for them to become scrap,” an RTO official said.