Mumbai Auto And Taxi Rides Will Cost More From February 1

MMRTA has decided to increase autorickshaw and taxi fares by Rs 3 from February 1 due to rising costs of living, vehicles, fuel, and other expenses.

Mumbai's iconic black and yellow taxi. (File photo)

Source : PTI

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Transport Authority (MMRTA) on Friday has decided to hike fares of autorickshaw and taxis by Rs 3 from February 1. This decision was approved in a meeting of MMRTA on Thursday.

According to the notification issued by the transport department, the decision to hike fares was taken due to the increased cost of living, vehicles, fuel, operational expenses, maintenance costs and other factors, Hindustan Time reported.

Information received from the transport department stated that the autorickshaw fare will now be increased from Rs 23 to Rs 26. Similarly, the taxi fare will be increased from Rs 28 to Rs 31.

An official from the department said ,"The new basic fare for autorickshaws will be Rs 26, up from Rs 23, while for black-and-yellow taxis, it will increase to Rs 31 from the current Rs 28."

Bharat Kalaskar, secretary, MMRTA, said, as quoted by Hindustan Times, "The per-km fare of cabs was Rs 18.66, which has increased to Rs 20.66. The revised per-km rate of autos is Rs 17.14 from the current Rs 15.33. The Cool Cab revised per-km fare is Rs 37.20 from the present Rs 26.71. This will be applicable for all auto rickshaws and taxis running on CNG in MMR.”

The State Transport Department has told that vehicle meters must be recalibrated between February 1, 2025, and April 30, 2025. However, during this period, the revised tariff card will remain valid.

As per the unions, there are currently over 20,000 black-and-yellow taxis operating in Mumbai, while the number of autorickshaws in the MMR region is around 4.5 lakh, a report from Free Press Journal stated. However, according to RTO records, the actual number of vehicles is significantly higher.

Thampy Kurien, who heads the Mumbai Rickshawmen’s Union said that it will take at least six months to recalibrate autorickshaws in MMR. He added that they will put forward their demand to the concerning authorities asking them to provide time for this.