One night, I was on the phone for an hour nearly trying to book one of the ‘cool cabs’ or AC cabs like Meru, Mega Cabs & Star Cabs. I wanted a cab for the airport at around 5am in the morning for an early morning flight.
Premier Taxis of Mumbai
“Please stay on the line… your estimated hold time is 10 minutes” The IVR system was pretty neat, but the customer rep took a long time to take my call. When the rep picked up, I told him I needed a taxi for the airport. The immediate answer was “we are very sorry to inform you that all our cabs are booked till 9am” . It was the same case with all the other cab services.
What is their problem? When I asked them how it was that all their taxis were booked – Does Mumbai go for a late night party on a Monday early morning? Is the company sending their drivers to sleep and giving them a night’s rest? “Sir our taxis are booked for the airport passengers and the railway passengers”
That answer made some sense. But a friend was convinced that they didn’t want to ply short distances and hence the excuses that morning. Finally in the wee hours of the morning I walked out on the main road and I got a taxi with an overhead carrier in no more than 3 minutes. Sweet!
There have been articles in the newspapers and on the media about why the current taxi fleet might be getting obsolete and that the new fleet of Private AC cars with Call centers might replace the humble yellow and black premier taxis of Mumbai. They may be cutting the pie a bit more, but I think the Premier Padmini taxis are here to stay and here’s why:
- They’re available at 4 am : I don’t know if they were booking the cabs for the tooth fairies, or whether they were scared of the ghosts at night, the AC car cos like Meru and Mega Cabs should have their cabs free in the early mornings too. It’s just plain silly that it isn’t available.
- They’re cheaper (on paper at least) : Their fares even with ac are good competition for the Private companies. Of course if you’re not smart, they drive you around the town and charge you a bit more if you take them from the airport. They get the job done though.
- Politics won’t allow it : The cab industry has figures of around….. with many political parties backing the rickshaw and taxi unions, more lobbying in their favor is already happening.
- They don’t require advance booking: There are times when they refuse to ply you to certain places, but it is quite possible that you will find a yellow black taxi more easily on the road than the private ones.
- Their part of our Heritage: That’s my view at least… Like the yellow cabs of new York, Mumbai’s black and yellow ones – the crammed and uncomfortable ones are a signature of Mumbai travel. They’re not going to go out without a fight. Just like Delhi’s Ambassadors
Do you think the Mumbai taxis are better than the private ones?
Won't be washed away
