Traffic congestion also to blame for auto, taxi fare hike

The traffic congestion in the city is one of the reasons you’ll have to shell out more for your auto and cab rides from next week. Transport officials and auto, taxi unions have pointed to Mumbai’s traffic jams as being partially responsible for the hike, as it has brought down the pace of public transport vehicles.

The traffic congestion in the city is one of the reasons you’ll have to shell out more for your auto and cab rides from next week. Transport officials and auto, taxi unions have pointed to Mumbai’s traffic jams as being partially responsible for the hike, as it has brought down the pace of public transport vehicles.

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Transport commissioner VN More told HT: “Traffic congestion has affected fixed as well as variable parameters of fare revision formula like fuel usage and earning of drivers, thus contributing to higher tariffs.”

The Brihan Mumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking, has hiked bus fare by more than 30% recently. “Daily average running of BEST buses is around 170km, which was around 210 km a decade ago,” told Sunil Ganacharya, senior member of BEST committee.

Transport department data shows that out of 850 vehicles being registered in MMR every day, around 350 are in city regional transport offices (RTO). As a result, more than 20 lakh vehicles ply on less than 2,000-km long city roads, bringing down the speed of all public transport vehicles.