auto

In quite a few of my previous blogs (I don’t remember if those blogs were here or at Funny Side Up), I’ve referred to conversations with auto and cab drivers. Generally, these have been in the context of something entirely unrelated, and I’ve only mentioned them to illustrate a point. Of late, though, I’ve come to realize that having conversations with the chap conveying me from point A to point B (or, should the need arise, points C and D as well) is quite a lot of fun. I’ve been talking to drivers for quite a while. Our old driver…

  Auto Rickshaws in the city have once again come into the limelight with the recent Auto Raid that was conducted by the Bangalore Traffic Police (BTP). On June 30th, over 700 members of the BTP, dressed in plainclothes, embarked on an operation to track down auto drivers who were not doing their due diligence to society. At the end of the 15-hour long sting operation, around 3,350 auto drivers were fined, and 450 autos were seized.The Auto Raid also threw up a shocking statistic - four in every ten auto drivers in the city were errant! Rules for auto…

I was tickled to see these two jostling for space on the roads of Bangalore... An auto and an automobile. Life is full of highs and lows, all existing together!

On July 31st, Seema (name changed) was attacked by the driver of the auto in which she was travelling. Seema's fault was that she took a picture of the number plate of the auto so as to file a complaint against the overcharging driver. The incident occurred in front of Eva Mall in Brigade road.In the Facebook page of Bangalore Traffic Police (BTP), Seema wrote that the driver had asked for Rs 60 to travel from Eva Mall to Austin Town, while the actual fare would be around Rs 20. The incident happened at 7 pm. Soon after, she called…

Governments may come and go. Land grabbers may be arrested and jailed. But the daylight robbery of auto drivers will still continue. In Chennai, you may have come across slightly different-coloured autos displaying the words ‘Tourists friendly’ and you may think these autos would charge you as per meter, or if not, reasonably. But these auto drivers are as bad or as good as others of their tribe. Of late I am shuttling between Chennai and Bangalore too often, so much so that I have become a frequent train traveller and can claim rebate in fare if the railway ministry…

Every area in Bengaluru has two faces. Koramangala is known to be a posh locality. But turn into a side road off 80 feet road and you will hit Koramangala village, or what's left of it. Small plots built to the brim, assorted coloured blocks upon blocks. A rare old single storied house every once in a while.Christina Daniels, a communications professional and our movie reviewer, talks about a part of Kammanahalli she hadn't seen in a while.Yes, there was the Kammanhalli of bright shining lights, beautiful houses and nice things in abundance. But on the edge of this nouveau…

Day before yesterday, I was driving back home from work. At the Silk Board signal, the lights had turned green. I was crossing over, suddenly an auto rickshaw comes out of nowhere, cuts across, breaking all rules and I had to hit the breaks but couldn't stop myself from hitting the auto rickshaw. Still from promo film on road accidents, made by the Bangalore Traffic Police. It was a minor hit. I have a Maruthi 800, my bumper got dislodged a bit and the auto rickshaw's right mudguard had a dent.I know many people who would just drive off. The…

Joint Transport Commissioner, Richard V D'Souza has issued an order to set up control rooms to register complaints against errant auto drivers in Bengaluru on a trial basis. The trial will last for two weeks starting December 6th, Monday. The order notes that the complaints against autodrivers have been on the rise and the RTOs have been unable to take action against the auto owners in several cases. In earlier cases of complaints, RTO offficials found out that the autos involved had fake registrations and hence they couldn't trace the owners. To counter this and ensure swift action, ten control…

Two months after their first auto boycott on August 12, Meter Jam - an initiative against menacing auto drivers - is organizing another boycott on October 12. In addition to Bangalore, the boycott will be held in Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi as well. Jammers in the city are hoping that the initiative will be successful, unlike the last boycott, during which autos were plying smoothly and many drivers did not even come to know about the initiative. "Last time the focus was on Mumbai, and Meter Jam was only starting to get popular in Bangalore. This time, around 40,000 online…

Travelling by Auto is not all about noise & pollution. A few things do make you smile;like this one at Mekhri Circle and this one on Queens road ⊕