On Saturday in Chennai, Chennai, Chennai stands in a row of cabins and cars in the queue. | Photo Credit: R. Ravindran
For everyday commuting to Chennai’s morning struggle does not end there to search for a car or cabin – starts there. Applications for bicycles like Ola, Uber and Rapido – which began with the promise of available mobility on request – quietly normalized the new system of surcharge, where passengers must earn another 30 to 50 GBP to ensure pass.
For the middle class of the city, commuting in exhaustive operation did not only become unpredictable, but also punishes because it burns a hole in people’s pockets.
When consumers reserve a cab, a car or wheel, displaying the fare is not limited to a minimum basic fare. Applications often make users to pay another amount before confirming the reservation. For example, one platform displays a message: “Now you can set the price that works for you – the higher the price, the higher the chance of driving. Add 10 to 50 ₹.”
Another application warns users with: “Captains do not accept at the set rate. Try adding another. This platform charges an additional £ 10 to £ 40.” Despite the fact that he has paid this surcharge, many passengers say that drivers still demand another 20 to 50 GBP, depending on the person or place. One kilometer now stands anywhere between 100 and 200 GBP per car, while at the cabins the fare ranges from 120 to 150 GBP at the same distance. Cars working independently or from local stands are charged by passengers even higher fares.
At 3 o’clock in the morning G. Srinivasan and his family arrived at the Tambarama station just to face the nightmare that booked to Palllikraranai. The application first showed 280 GBP for the car, then demanded another 20 ₹ and soon more. Finally, the driver called and lasted 500 ₹. When Srinivasan refused, the driver strictly told him to cancel the reservation and go home before cutting the call.
Monica, 31 years, a regular OLA and Uber user, said drivers often call for a booking to request additional payment, and ask passengers to cancel if they refuse – let customers pay a cancellation fee. “Previously, cars with meters would require 10 to 20 ₹ extra. Now, even for two km, the demand starts at 50 GBP through the fare,” she said. Several commuting, whom Hind spoke to, repeated the same opinion. They said that the state government should intervene and have a limitation of commuting prices.
Drivers also have their complaints. One of them said, “When we first join, the platform is pushing more driving in our way, but later the numbers drop. The incentives depend on the goals, and although they tell us partners, we will not receive any interim fund or benefits.
Jude Mathew, President of the Independent Association of Taxi drivers, prevented the driver and said that most taxi drivers avoid overcharging because they are directly monitored by aggregators and fear of disciplinary action. “However, automatic drivers use gaps because they can cancel driving. The bigger problem is that companies are repairing uniform fares throughout India, which is unsustainable. Our margins are very low – Delhi has cheaper CNG and more stores, while Chennai fights limited availability,” he said.
Recent instructions for the 2025 motor vehicle aggregator have introduced several changes to the dead end platform, including increased prices of top hours, fines of cancellation and instructions for the age of the vehicle and the driver’s compensation.
Cab units can now charge up to double tariffs (price overvoltage) during top hours, an increase compared to the previous limit of 1.5 times. During the top hours, the fares can be 50% lower than the basic fare.
President Tamil Nadu Auto Rickshaw Workers Union (Cit) S. Balasubramanian said: “Cars/taxis tariffs have not been set in the state over the past 13 years. We are continuously fighting and demanding consequential governments to determine that it is necessary to make more.
None of the driving applications responded to sent calls or e -maly.
(With inputs from Sangeethy Kandavel and R. Aishwaryaa)
Published – 7 September 2025 17:36
