Mumbaikar's will now have to pay extra money to travel in auto and rickshaw. The minimum charges for black and yellow cabs in Mumbai and the surrounding area will now be Rs 28, and for auto rickshaws, they will be Rs 23, with the base fares increasing by Rs 3 and Rs 2, respectively. According to an announcement from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Transport Authority (MMRTA), the revised rates will take effect on October 1. The minimum fee for a 1.5 km trip in a kaali-peeli taxi has increased from Rs 25 to Rs 28 and from Rs 21 to Rs 23 in an auto-rickshaw.
Beyond this minimum flag down distance, passengers will have to pay Rs 18.66 per km instead of Rs 16.93 per km for taxis and Rs 15.33 a km instead of 14.20 (per km) for auto-rickshaws," the release said. The decision to hike the fares was taken in the Monday MMRTA meeting chaired by the Maharashtra transport secretary. But it was announced only after the minutes of the meeting were signed. The existing fare for around 60,000 taxis and about 4.6 lakh auto-rickshaws in MMR has been in force since March 1, 2021. The new rates will be applicable for petrol as well as CNG-operated taxis, the MMRTA said. The minimum distance fare of blue-silver 'Cool' cab taxis is hiked to Rs 40 per km from Rs 33 per km, and thereafter the per km fare of these cabs will be Rs 26.71. As per the release, the MMRTA has given two months between October 1 to November 30 for the recalibration of fare metres installed in taxis and auto rickshaws.