Roadblocks to change
November 22, 2007 6:27 PM

Roadblocks to change

But there are a few reasons that change -resistant cabbies put forward to explain why they prefer to stick to their old Premier Padminis

LESS LEG-SPACE
Many customers do not want to travel in the smaller Maruti and Hyundai vehicles (like 800 and Santro, respectively) because they tend to have less leg-space than the Premier Padminis. That is one of  the reasons why there tends to be some opposition to change among cabbies, says A L Quadros of the Mumbai Taximen's Union.

NO SPACE FOR LUGGAGE
Many of the new cars like Hyundai Santro, Maruti 800,and Tata Indica have very little space for keeping luggage as compared to the old fiats. This is another reason why many cabbies are resistant to change.

HIGH MAINTAINANCE COST
Most cabbies feel that most of the new small-car alternatives to the old Fiats will not be able to rough it when they vie on Mumbai's roads. Most of these new alteratives also tend to have a higher maintenance cost.

PROBLEM WITH FINANCE
A cabbie who makes Rs 20,000 a month cannot afford to pay a very high EMI for a new car; this often discourages chauffeurs from going for the new, high-end alternatives.