BENGALURU: After getting flooded with complaints of auto-rickshaw drivers fleecing commuters, the State Transport Department has begun its crackdown. On Monday, the department booked 299 cases against those autorickshaw drivers which were charging illegal fares. The department also seized 114 autos that were found fleecing customers.
The sudden action by the Transport Department comes after the Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy wrote to his department directing them to crack down on autos and ride-hailing companies that were charging exorbitantly.
While the autos and cabs fleecing passengers had become common, without any fear of law and lack of enforcement by the transport officials and the traffic police, the already exorbitant amount was jacked up by the autos, after the bike taxi ban, leaving the commuters fuming.
Two teams were set up from each Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Bengaluru, and they started to slap fines and seize vehicles that were overcharging customers. Bangalore South RTO topped the list by filing 48 cases, followed by Bangalore West with 36 cases. Bangalore Central RTO topped the vehicle seizure list with 19 vehicles seized.
Bangalore Central MP PC Mohan wrote on social media, “Karnataka HC capped auto fares in May 2024. Aggregators have flouted the law for over a year. This defiance cannot continue. The law of the land is supreme. The Transport Department must act, cancel illegal permits, revoke aggregator licences and protect commuters from exploitation”.
Mentioning that a 1.5-km ride via aggregators costs over Rs 70 in Bengaluru, the MP stated that fare regulation has completely collapsed. The state government must fix base fares, enforce meters and protect commuters from app cartelisation and digital monopolies. He claimed that the citizens have lost Rs 1,010 crore to overcharging.
The Transport Department has failed to act, and the digital monopolies continue to loot. He demanded that commuters be saved from daylight robbery.
Officials from the Transport Department maintained that the crackdown on overcharging would continue.