Auto Rickshaw – Auto Quite Literally

  auto quite literally! It seems there is nothing manual about it. Sudden breaks, abrupt cut, speed fluctuations, knees protruding from both its sides. An auto rickshaw driver is capable of doing anything at any given point of time. The traffic queues, red lights, side lanes and the road safety rules no ado bothers them. Almost each one of us has contributed to the safety of these small cubes running at will on the roads. Regular drivers have group memories of  forced breaks or sudden cuts  in our driving diaries. It is not uncommon. Is it that every Auto rickshaw driver in the city is an adventure-seeking bike enthusiast by heart, it is just that he got a three-wheeler instead? A drive in an auto rickshaw is as adventurous as driving on the roads with auto rickshaws running with the vehicles. The thin-framed, cloth-clad little enthusiast is always on a zig-zag go. Is unpredictability its thumb rule on the road or it is to check the reflexes of drives behind different wheels? The smaller its size, the bigger is the mystery behind it. At times the sudden break is only to check if the onlooker is  interested in a ride. That is alright if he is not interested, they will pick up a sudden speed with a sharp cut again. At times I wonder that do they suffer from  abnormality in speed or  are they just courteous to ask everybody standing or walking for a ride? That is because they do slow down near every pedestrian. The concept of health walks does not exist for them. The only worry is that its thin frame and a cloth cover will not save the bones of the people it has in it. The school children that it ferries, the office goers and those who came out of their houses only to have some good time become the responsibility of the other drivers on the road. The upsetting unity of auto drivers is a terror force threatening behind the unreported regular unpleasant experiences on the road. May it regain its manual control soon and contribute to a pleasant driving experience for all.]]>