Battery powered Autos - Delhi

 Commuting in India can be a mind boggling exercise in futility and frustration. Indians have the widest variety of modes of travel and they include

·        

      Walking,

·         Horse riding

·         Donkey riding

·         Camel riding

·         Elephant riding

·         Buffalo riding

·         Bicycles

·         Cycle rickshaws

·         Rickshaws drawn by  human beings

·         Trams

·         Horse drawn carriages (tongas)

·         Buffalo drawn carriages

·         Donkey drawn carriages

·         Auto rickshaws

·         Buses

·         Shared autos

·         Shared Jeeps

·         Taxis

·         Public transport

·         Two-wheeler (scooters)

·         Two wheeler (motorcycles)

·         Metro train

·         Suburban trains

·         Regular trains

·         Air Taxis

·         Aero planes

·         Monorail

·         Boats

·         House boats

·         And a new one is added battery driven cars 

    I saw the battery car in Delhi. The battery powered cars originally costing around 600 dollars (costing around 36,000 rupees) in China retail around 95,000 rupees in India. These new additions to the Delhi roads are quite a attraction. These cute looking new vehicles are sleek and are very light and can carry 6 people very easily.   These silent vehicles are agile and are loved by the passengers. These battery cars operate as stage carriers and are taking business away from the auto rickshaws of Delhi.

Right now these battery powered cars are being given to men belonging to the weaker section. These vehicles are not registered and the drivers need no license to drive these battery driven cars. No doubt these new additions to the roads of Delhi are welcome but rules should not be relaxed or totally done away with. The new vehicles should be registered and they should adhere to the rules to which the other vehicles are subjected to. 

Also this mode of transport should be allowed to come to other part of the country. These can be used by commuters who have to travel for a short distance of say about one kilometer. The commuter could be charged Rs 10/- rupees for a ride. At that price it could be a win-win for both the driver and for the commuters. The driver uses sealed lead acid batteries and the battery car can be riven for 80 kilometers on a full charge.

The battery cars can be used for many other applications. As golf carts and  they can be used in the airports, in the university campuses and  by post men. They can replace cycle rickshaws. The energy of the cycle rickshaw driver can be conserved and he could go home happy at the end of the day. The Kolkata government could gift these to the poor human driven rickshaws pullers.  A human pulling other humans is a practice still prevalent in the streets of Kolkata. These can provide a module of decorum and dignity to these human rickshaw puller of Kolkata.

These battery driven cars could also be very liked by the tourists. These are absolutely safe and travel very slowly. Tourist who want to take as much of the city as possible could find these a boon. But care should be taken that the tourists are not fleeced. Prominently displayed rate cards can be a solution. If these precautions are not taken these could become the next tuck tucks. Very prominent land marks of Bangkok but feared as they are known to fleeced the commuters Ala the auto rickshaw drivers of Chennai.

Auto, Auto

“Auto Auto”. The passengers would call out. Loud and clear. The Yellow autos (the three wheeler bike or vehicle) spring into action. Autos are India’s lifeline. In a country where public transportation is either scarce or over crowded Autos provide an easy, cheap and an affordable way of travel. Autos or Rickshaws as they are called have become inseparable with the Indian culture. 

Autos have been associated with India and Indians. Right from the time when a traveler lands in the city to the time when they leave, autos become a part of you. Autos come in many shapes and the drivers can be as colorful as the auto itself.

Auto drivers can be rude, friendly, and smart or just like any one of us. They might be willing to ply on the government regulated fare, demand a hefty premium (extra) on the metered fare or simply demand a flat amount. They can be eager beavers smartly hailing you the minute they see you. Or they could be lords of all they preview – refuse to ply even you go up to them and plead your case. Your amazement would double when you see they still in the stand on your return trip. They just don’t seem to care or mind. Let us see how the auto owners have used innovative marketing to make more money or just stay ahead of the competition.

 

Stage Carrier instead of a contract carrier: By government rule autos are contract carriers and not stage carriers. Autos can take passengers from one destination to other and can’t pick up passengers from one bus stop and drop them at an other bus stop.

But many autos have become stage carriers and compete with local city bus service for the passengers. This is not legal but prevails in many parts of India. In many cities these autos are the only form of transport that the passengers can avail. Called seven seaters, Vikrams, sharing autos these are very popular.   

Carry school children: Many auto drivers have fixed income along with variable income. This is to buffet themselves from the vagaries of nature and sudden disturbances. Many auto drivers drop children to their school on a monthly basis. This assures a monthly business but the auto driver is tied up with a route on the morning and in the evening and this inhibits his flexibility and the routes that he can ply.  

Call Auto service: Prevalent in Gurgaon, call auto service is a new innovation. These auto drivers are better behaved, have genuine auto meters and come to your residence for a pick up. They would charge a premium of just 20/- Rs more for the service.

 

 

Flat amount charged per day: (double up as a tourist guide): Very popular in the tourist destinations the auto can be engaged for a fixed time and fixed amount, let’s say 400/- rupees and 4 hours and 40 kilometres. The auto can be used anywhere in the city and the bonus is that the auto driver would become the tour guide.

Contract with a company for a month: An interesting variation. This was deployed by one of the Territory managers that I worked with at Network limited. This TM had employed an Auto driver on a monthly basis. The auto driver had become so smart and so well versed with the happenings of the company that he almost became the personal assistant of the TM. Autos are also hired by companies for canvassing their products and services. A person with a loud speaker would slowly go from one locality in to another in an auto canvasing and displaying the products and explaining the services.

  

Conversion of old motorcycles such as Harley’s and Enfield bullets as autos: These converted autos called Phut Phuti (converted Harley Davidson and Royal Enfield bullet motorcycles) would chug along making “Phut Phut” sounds. This amazing contraction had the driver on his seat totally exposed to the elements of the nature. All his passengers would sit behind him. They are well protected and had a shade over their head. The Phut Phutis are no longer being used as they were not very stable and caused huge environmental pollution.

Autos as moving advertisements: Many auto drivers use the back side of the auto as a space for advertisements. Autos being very numerous are a very good method of promotion. Placing tourism brochures, brochures of hotels, visiting cards of shops selling trinkets and souvenirs in a pouch in front of the passenger seat also have been tried by enterprising auto drivers.