Pax caught in crossfire between prepaid, metered auto drivers at Pune rly stn
Passengers at Pune railway station are facing hard time getting autorickshaws due to constant fighting between auto drivers and those at prepaid booth facility
PUNE: Passengers travelling from Pune railway station are facing a hard time getting auto-rickshaws due to the constant fighting between local auto drivers and auto drivers at the prepaid auto booth. While clashes over passengers occur routinely at Pune railway station, things came to a head Friday afternoon after an argument between two auto drivers turned into a full-blown fight, a video of which is currently going viral on social media. So much so that an FIR was lodged with the Pune police about the incident.
There are separate queues for prepaid and metered auto-rickshaws outside Pune railway station. While the fare for prepaid rickshaws is fixed in advance, passengers traveling by metered rickshaws have to pay according to the meter. For the past few months however, there has been an ongoing dispute between prepaid auto drivers and local auto drivers who operate by the meter at Pune railway station with passengers at the receiving end of this clash.
Smita Jadhav, a regular passenger, said, “We just want safe and affordable auto services to reach our destination and if we get the same from the prepaid auto booth, we will prefer them. There is always a rush of auto drivers outside the station fighting to get passengers. The traffic police or railway authorities should take action against it.”
Another passenger Neel Sharma said, “Last month when I came to Pune railway station and went to the prepaid auto booth to book an auto, some other auto drivers approached me telling me not to book from the prepaid booth. They insisted that I take a metered auto instead…”
