Passengers arriving to Mumbai by long distance trains are generally tired and in a hurry to reach home. If some one is receiving those passengers, it is fine.
The problem is when one has to take a cab from one of these stations like Mumbai Ctl, CST, etc.
There are cab drivers who catch you right on platform. They will negotiate the price and try to motivate you to take the cab. It is known that the gullible passengers travel with them and realise later on that they have been overcharged.
There is nothing new that I have stated. The point that I am making is different. Yesterday we alighted at Borivali. I am aware of the racket mentioned above. We were therefore planning to take a cab from regular queue randomly.
Ad we were leaving the platform a cab driver asked us to take him. He also said that he will charge by meter. Since we felt that if the driver is going by meter there is little chance of cheating. We took that cab to go to Nalasopara.
When we reached our destination the bill was Rs 1067. Instantly I knew I have been cheated but having agreed to pay by meter which was showing that amount I had no option but pay. Later on I checked the distance which turned out to be 38 km and charges on mindicator app showed the fare for that distance to be just about Rs 600.
The education that I gained is the meter of this cab was rigged. Second lesson (which I always knew but missed yesterday) is always take a cab from the queue outside the station. Chance of getting a cab at random also randomises chance of getting cheated. Other option is to book a modern radio cab.
I think loss of about Rs 400 was good price for the knowledge gained.
Surprised to see this happen in Mumbai!
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