There is also a huge army of three wheeled rickshaws. There are some prepaid rickshaw stands at Shivajinagar, Swargate Bus Depot and Lohegaon Airport. Nevertheless, always demand that they use the meter and that they show you the sheet of paper (referred as Tariff Card) which converts the rickshaw meter readings to the actual cost in rupees. As of July 2010 the conversion equation is�: Cost = 9 * Reading + 2, where "Cost" is the actual fare in rupees and "Reading" is the meter reading which is supposed to be Kilometers traveled. Thus a 2 on the meter is actually Rs (9*2 + 2) = Rs 20. Or a 3.50 on the meter is Rs (3.5*9 + 2) = Rs 32.50.
The driver may occasionally stop to ask for directions depending on how familiar he is with the area. All rickshaws plying in the Municipal Corporation limits are supposed to charge fare according to tariff card. Most of the times they will try to charge you a little extra but that won't be too much. You can very well argue with them based on the conversion equation stated above, and sometimes they will agree to it.
Now a days, many auto rickshaw drivers try to charge extra for long distances or very short distances, or they refuse the fare. If they realise you are not from the city, they may try to take longer routes to the destination to charge extra money from you. Thus, outsiders and foreigners, use your own judgement before boarding any auto rickshaw. Stick to the demand of charging by meter and refuse strongly to pay any extra amount, unless it is midnight. Autorickshaw drivers may also refuse to travel to quite a few parts of the city as per their convenience; however, this is against the law if their meter reads "on hire" in the upright position. If the sign is turned sideways, the rickshaw driver is not technically working and can refuse you.
It is very common for rickshaw drivers plying between 11 PM and 6 AM to demand 1.5 times the normal rates for the journey. You are advised to get this cleared with the driver before boarding the rickshaw. It is also sometimes advisable to flag a rickshaw from the streets (if practical and possible) instead of boarding one from the stands as often, rickshaw drivers waiting in stands demand more fare.
If you have complaints against auto drivers for not accepting short distance rides (or any rides), asking more meter fare, not using a meter, taking other passengers along the way, carrying more passengers than allowed capacity, stopping at bus stands or other similar complaints of serious nature, you can email or call the Road Transport Authorities at 020-22051414 or 020-27492828 (PCMC) or email [email protected]. Traffic cops usually come right away to the spot to book a complaint against the driver. Commuters can also send their MMS pictures at +91 9420218338. The complaints should clearly mention all details including the auto’s registration number, the time of taking the rickshaw, details of auto fare, the distance commuted, locations, date, time, nature of complaint.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Pune
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Pune Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
