'Auto'cracy

Auto-rickshaws for me, were cheap, convenient (though uncomfortable usually) means of transportation in any Indian city. Despite having to haggle, bargain and sometimes (most of the time?) pay extra, it has been a saviour for me on numerous occasions. OK, I used to love.. naa.. atleast like auto-rickshaws. But all that was before coming down here to Kochi.

Auto

Photo by Deepak Gupta

Catching an auto for a ride in Kochi, compares well to buying a ticket for a block-buster movie on its opening day. Its a major circus act. The supposed auto-stands here rarely have an auto on stand-by. And by chance if there is one parked, the usual conversation goes like this – “ചേട്ടാ, സൌത്ത് റെയില്‍വേ സ്റ്റേഷനില്‍ പോകുവോ?” (Brother, can you give me a ride to the railway station?). The guy gives you a blank stare as if I have abused his ancestors. No other response, so I ask again. He grunts rudely – ‘ഇല്ല!’ (No!). And that’s it. No reason. He just doesn’t want to go. I doubt if I have seen any city with auto drivers like this. Compare that to the multitude of drivers, jumping at you when you get out of Volvo in Bangalore. I hated paying exorbitant amounts there, but this is much much worse. Atleast you got home quicker!

And then there is competition. No the participants are not the autos, but the poor wannabe passengers. 10 different people located at strategic spots on either side of the road, hoping to be the first to wave down an auto that’ll privilege them with a ride. I could almost spot a smirky grin on the lucky winner – ‘You losers!’. Oh then there is a thing, all autos here have electronic meters. But well, of the hundreds of rides I’ve already taken in this city, I haven’t yet had the privilege of seeing one of them turned on. Its just a fancy item attached to the vehicle, with no apparent purpose at all. I wonder how many rickshaw-wallahs here actually know how to operate one!

Yes, I have had a few good experiences with auto drivers even in the small time I have been in the city. But the other side of the coin heavily outweighs those good deeds.

Maybe they are actually doing me a favor without them knowing. Those long walks… definitely healthier. Ha! I win!

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Posted by Anoop Sankar
  • Ginu

    I can’t even imagine you had such bad experiences here.. Especially after staying in B’lore for so long… I agree with ur point that the number of autos are too less here and people often have to compete to catch one.. And its much worse when its raining too.. Plus, i totally agree to the meter non-usage… I guess that’s common throughout Kerala. It was something very new to me when i first reached Bangalore and my brother advised me not to get in any auto where they don’t charge by the meter…

    But i never (i would like to stress NEVER) in the 10+ years i’ve stayed in Cochin, had an experience where the auto guy won’t come to wherever i want to go… For that matter, I don’t recollect that happening to me anywhere in Kerala.. When i first read your post, i even thought you were describing the auto guys in B’lore..

    Actually, to me, getting down from the Volvo @ Cochin is a big relief compared to the same experience in Bangalore.. Yes, i will have to look around or wait 2-3 mins to sight an auto here.. But once i show my hand, not a single one goes without stopping (it happened to me even today morning… They guy stopped even though i had stuck my hand out at the last moment & there was heavy traffic behind him)! And i actually have the luxury of getting in, resting my luggage and sitting comfortably on the seat before actually telling the driver where to go..

    Never in the 4 years i have traveled by auto in Bangalore, this has happened.. I had to ask at least 6 guys yesterday evening @ Bangalore, to get an auto to reach Madiwala to catch my bus. And many more of them actually just sped off, even without stopping.. I had a heavy bag on my back and it was actually drizzling quite heavily!
    Yes, they jump in from all directions when you get out of a Volvo there… But that’s only greed.. None of those guys will be ready to come for the meter fare.. I have been even asked over 200 Rs. for a < 2 km ride just coz i got out of a Volvo @ Silk board jn. They just try their luck, trying to find an innocent tourist in B'lore, who's unaware of the distances & fares. Once the words 'meter fare' come out of your mouth, they leave you and walk over to the bus trying to find a victim… I usually have to walk over to the next jn, before i can catch an auto guy who hasn't seen me get down from the Volvo, and who demands less than what i have in my purse at that moment (and all this bargaining goes while I hang on to my heavy luggage)…

    Maybe you stayed too close to office for most of the time in B'lore.. Or always had company with you, to share the expense even if the auto guy charged more… But remembering the distances i've had to travel in B'lore, & the amount of money i've wasted on autos & the bargaining i have done, i would be glad to trade those experiences with any of the ones i've had in Kerala…

    Sorry buddy, i have to totally disagree with you on this post.. :-)
    I guess you had a bad experience last week and wrote a blog post a bit too quickly. Or maybe Cochin is becoming another techie encouraged, non-user-friendly metro like Bangalore… Time will tell, i guess.

    PS: I remember some years back there was a survey on the auto drivers in Kerala in one of the papers, and Cochin had came in second after Calicut. And the best (read: most decent) driver in the state was actually a guy from Palarivattom stand.

  • Anoop

    It’s really not about the money I’m so worried about. Kochi is definitely cheaper in that sense. But the attitude of the auto drivers. Many a time I’ve felt like giving a big tight slap. Really. And no it’s not just one experience. I have countless ones starting from the day I landed in Kochi.

    I nowadays actually dread going to Trivandrum on weekends, because I start to worry about the journey back even before I board the train. Nobody outside the railway station comes for a ride (don’t even think of the long queues in the pre-paid counter). Consider this, last month, I finally convinced a guy to come to my place by offering him 50 bucks (when it would have cost 30 on a metered ride). What this guy does is goes around the entire area, scouts for other riders.. and when he finds nobody else after 15 mins, he drops me off half a kilometer away and tells me that he can’t go. ‘Nashtamaanu’. It was just unbelievable. I have never seen such behavior anywhere else. I can give you plenty more examples if you want.

    My opinions about the autos are shared by almost everyone in office too, in fact this post came as a result of one such discussion. Maybe the situation has deteriorated recently. I don’t know. But I wouldn’t rate Kochi auto drivers very highly. Absolutely no way. I haven’t come across worse in my entire life. Honest opinion.

  • Asif

    I’m one of those guys at office who shares Anoop’s opinion on this. I’ve been at Kochi for more than a year now, and my bad days with the autos far outnumber the good ones. That we are beyond ourselves with relief when a ride ends without incident is a sign of how things are. I have been refused more rides than I can count and been asked for fares that made me wince.

    On reading Ginu’s comment I thought for a moment whether mine were odd experiences in an otherwise perfect world and went searching. Came across a couple of blog posts that assured me I was not alone. Sharing a hilarious one, with a happy ending – http://sooryodayamdiary.blogspot.com/2006/08/blog-post_27.html

  • Jasim

    Been at Cochin for the last 1 year. My experience with the Auto guys have been the same if not worse. Can’t put the entire blame on them either – the city traffic is horrible.

    And contrary to popular perception, the people (and auto guys specially) are very rude compared to their counterparts in TVM. The charge very often borders on extortion. The distance meter is an alien concept around here.

  • Anoop

    @Asif: Awesome link! :D

    @Jasim: Don’t agree about the people being rude(r). I’ve come across equally rude people in both cities. But auto-guys definitely agree.

    @Ginu: I hope those two comments, corroborate my views.

  • callezee

    What about bus transportation?

  • Anoop

    Bus connectivity is pretty good actually. But it is not always possible. Especially if you are in a hurry, or have a lot of luggage, or you are going to a place with limited buses (like my current place of stay).

  • Ginu

    @Asif: Nice link.. Enjoyed it. :-)

    @Anoop: I guess the situation has become really bad now. And nowadays, I have the need to catch an auto in Cochin only once or twice a month.
    But frankly, this is the first time I have heard such complaints about Auto drivers in Cochin (or Kerala)… Maybe our opinions differ so much because we are looking at different comparisons.. My comments are mostly comparing the attitude of the auto guys in Bangalore. They may be bad in Kerala, but I can assure you they are not as bad as they are here in Bangalore.
    Guys not coming to the place you want to go and 2x – 3x fares are usual here. So usual that we are used to it by now. I never expect the first 5 autos to even stop when I show my hand. And I never expect the ones who stop, to come for meter fare. Meter + 20 is a kind of standard here by now. And the guys jumping on to you from all sides happens only at Madiwala, when you get out of a Volvo. Anywhere else, u’ll have to run behind them and shout over the traffic to catch them.. And coming to the bad experiences, I’ve had a driver stop the auto at a dark corner and threaten me for not agreeing to pay over the meter charge and I’ve also been thrown out (only verbally, not physically.. at least not yet.. ;-)) of the auto on top of the Indiranagar flyover, since the driver suddenly decided that the direction which I wanted to go was not to his liking. I think I would need to publish a book, if I were to list down all of them.. :-)
    Coming back to Cochin, it seems to me that most of the people are having problems with the auto guys waiting at the Railway stations… This is very much likely, since like the guys jumping on the Volvo passengers at Madiwala, they are waiting to catch some innocent tourists (even North Indians who want to get to Naval Base / Willington island) who’ll give what they ask for. Most of them won’t be ready to come for short distances, as they prefer waiting for the big fish.
    Or maybe the situation has really worsened over time.. As Jasim wrote, the traffic has become horrible too. And the living costs have gone up. Can’t blame them altogether for trying to make some quick money. But i’m pretty sure it can’t be get as bad as the situation in Bangalore, anytime soon…
    I’m just waiting for G to put down her comments. I don’t think anyone has travelled in the Bangalore autos as much she has… ;-)