Not being a bitter person, as I don't often fall for these scams... I am bitter anyway. I find them too annoying. Their latest exploits include the following, as they are even more obnoxious at tourist spots. My behaviour in countering may often seem rude, and not reflecting the fact that the majority of auto drivers (in rural areas) work hard for unreliable pay. It must be remembered that this is not rude, as the offended entities are not in fact people
Exploring on foot is sometimes the least hassle, but with company an auto may be preferable. My estimation of distances on foot isn't perfect - it turns out my estimate was a bit short - 2.5km. The auto driver loudly protests and on the journey points out the 3km marker some 200m from the destination. With a range of the distance as 3.2km to 3.3km he proudly said "I was right, 4km". I point to the marker some 200m away, and say - no not 4km, 3.2km. To this he replies, yes 4km... I'm not sure why, as I had already agreed a fixed price, this fundamental disagreement with reality persists
You only gave me Rs70, while holding Rs80. I've been considering buying a bamboo cane for just this purpose, as auto drivers are not generally popular.
Rs150 journey at the end of the day, but despite leafing through a large wad of notes the auto driver has only Rs30 change for Rs200. I'm almost certain the bastard lies, hoping I will give him more, but I can't see the notes clearly in the dark. Lucky I always have exact change for these situations
"No bus at this time". Walk 200m, see bus pulling in. Saved outselves about Rs150. However I should add that sometimes when asking directions auto drivers will help, one correctly directed me to an ATM and another a bus stop recently.
On very common routes, where the autos and small vans act almost as a bus service, you can be given a per person price for the auto. Normally reasonable, the driver will wait for a few minutes to get as many people as he can. For a group of 3 people to agree the correct fare means per journey, considering road, distance and return... but then to drop in the words "per person" just at the end of negotiation. From the introduction of the words he knows this isn't how it works, and clearly wanted 3x the fair rate. I laughed hard in his face and chose a different auto. Sadly too many tourists pay these unprincipled scam artists
On a slightly different note, a bus scam for a tourist sleeper. Why trash the reputation of your company, and this is from a man who considers Ryanairs charges reasonable, by adding a hidden Rs10 'tip' on boarding the bus. (They actually had a sign to this effect to make people cough up). Is such a small sum of money on a Rs650 ticket worth it?
Auto drivers protest of "no return journey". Occasionally true for long journeys which take them outside their patch, but greatly overused in tourist spots. I have started to counter with "How is that my problem", which is quickly understood
Charges for 3 or 4 people in tourist areas. When cooperating auto drivers want to prevent tourists getting a good deal, and despite the reality of a trivial added fuel cost try and charge a far higher rate for more than 2 people. This cooperation is in itself a problem, and despite so far managing to break them almost every time, it sometimes needs the waiting standoff. They will set a high rate, and you don't have a choice. The best strategies are to walk off in the right direction, and hope a strike breaker or other auto will see you, or simply to wait. If the fair is clearly unreasonable the cooperation may collapse
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