Many yoga students rent scootors to get around. A few rent bicycles. Others, like me, walk or get auto rickshaws (known here as Autos). They’re readily available. Everytime I walk anywhere, I have to constantly signal ‘No thank you’ to rickshaws who honk their horn, slow down and peer at me hopefully.
Autos are basically 3-wheel motorcycles with a black and yellow shell around it. There are no doors. They have a super-small turning radius, which helps because drivers u-turn randomly everywhere. There is no reverse gear so the driver has to physically push it backwards.
Passengers sit in the backseat. 3 can fit snugly. 4 is a squash (especially with my 6ft5 friend, Steve) so sometimes one of us will sit upfront with the driver. You’ll be charged 50% more for 4 passengers. It’s not very comfortable sitting with the driver because the meter presses into my back. I also have to keep my left foot braced against the front of the rickshaw to keep myself from falling out the side when we’re turning. Needless to say I only sit upfront with drivers I know because the front seat isn’t designed for two.
What never ceases to amaze me is watching the autos carrying the school children too and from school. They cram in up to 14 children. All you see as they approach are bags hanging out the sides, then lots of little smiling faces. Then many waving hands with shouts of ‘Hello hello!’.
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| Kids piling into the rickshaw |
The rickshaws are all decorated differently, just like taxis back home. Some have pictures of Hindu Goddesses, Jesus or Mary. Some have telephone numbers written all over. Some are completely bare. One driver has a sticker ‘Tom Rocks’ on the back of his rickshaw. His name is Raju (not Tom – go figure). Raju’s even got a CD player under his seat with speakers conveniently located at the back so we can hear, although he can’t. He plays 80s music – Rick Springfield, the Police, Michael Jackson. I love it!
My friend Steve always recognises how the rickshaw has been decorated. I usually look at the driver’s face. Yes, contrary to popular belief, one Indian man doesn’t look exactly like every other Indian man. This is very useful if we want to avoid rickshaw drivers who have tried to rip us off before.
The best rickshaws have rain-shields (sheets of plastic) which prevent the rain from coming in from the side. Some have cloth ‘curtains’ which aren’t very useful because you get the wet cloth sticks to your skin. Lots have nothing at all. This means that you end up pretty wet during the monsoon rains.
Rickshaw horns also vary. They either go ‘beep-beep’ (like a motorcycle) or ‘bop-bop’ (like a circus clown’s honker). Everyone on the road is constantly honking their horn and I much prefer the latter; less shrill and thus less annoying. They say in India
There are certain tactics you have to employ in order not to get cheated by rickshaw drivers.
Firstly, you have to check if they know where you want to go. It helps if you put on an Indian accent. Even then, watch their body language. They tend to say ‘Yes’ even if they have no idea where you’re headed.
Secondly, make sure they switch on the meter. By law they have to but they always try their luck, ‘Meter not working madam. 50 rupees (when it only costs 30)’. If that happens, get out and walk. They will call you back, either turning on the meter or you can bargain the price down. It’s a lot better these days, especially with the drivers who are used to ferrying foreigners around. They usually turn on the meter without any fuss.
Thirdly, watch that they don’t take a roundabout way, which is what they may do if the meter is on.
It is important that you roughly know how to get to where you want to go and how much the trip should cost. The meter starts at 14 rupees and usually stays there for quite a while before starting to move. The other day I got a meter which started ticking way too soon and way too quickly. I didn’t want to make a fuss so I paid what the meter read. I did however tell him, ‘Your meter very fast’. Of course the reply was ‘Oh no madam’. What to do?
The great thing here is that meters don’t move when the rickshaw stops. And even if it was connected to the engine, drivers tend to switch off the engine at red lights anyway.
Meters used to start at 12 rupees. Older autos may not have switched to the new starting fare. These drivers will show you a tariff card which matches the old fare to the new fare. Others will tell you that for every 10 rupees, you have to pay 2 more. This brought about a bit of confusion when I first arrived because I thought they were pulling a fast one on me.
What I do these days, especially if there are a few of us getting picked up and going to multiple locations, is to call a auto driver I know and trust. This way he knows where I want to go (or he will find out) and will wait for me as well. It saves a lot of hassle and confrontational moments where you throw some money at the driver and just walk off with him shouting after you.
Yesterday, my auto from town back home kept stalling. I got a little suspicious that the ultimate would happen. True enough, after the fourth stall, the driver turned back and looked at me with a little smile and casual shake of his head. So, I got out, gave him some money and walked home. Good thing I was only ten minutes away. Another reason to get a reliable driver.
I have worked out that the auto drivers operate like the mafia. They have their own ‘gang’ and each gang has its turf. Within the gang, they work on a FIFO (first in first out) basis. This means whoever shows up earliest at their rickshaw stand will get the first customer.
Autos are a great form of transportation. They’re cheap, easily available but like in Forrest Gump, you never know what experience you’re going to get.
Here are photos of Raju’s auto decked out for
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