Autos to have taxi-like lights on top in Delhi

New Delhi  :  Autorickshaws in Delhi may soon have taxi-like lights on top to indicate they are free for hiring – or not. The commuters and auto unions are both divided on its merits.

Delhi Traffic Police is to submit within a week the proposal to the city transport department, a police officer said Friday.

“The proposal is to have top lights on autos like taxis. They will blink when occupied and commuters will know which auto is for hire. We are examining this process to make it work real time,” Additional Commissioner of Police Anil Shukla told IANS.

The move has received a mixed response from auto unions.

“The move is only meant to harass auto drivers,” said S.K. Bhatia, president of the All Delhi Auto Taxi Federation.

M.S. Mansuri of the All India Trade Union Congress disagreed.

“It is a good thing police have taken note of such a thing. This will make things easier for both the commuters and the auto drivers, especially at night,” Mansuri told IANS.

Commuters are all for it.

“It is a very nice proposal. Once implemented, it will definitely be helpful and save us from a lot of problems at night,” said IT professional Dharna Aggarwal.

Somya Mathur, a public relations professional, had another view.

“I don’t think it will make much of a difference. But it can be of some help in terms of saving time in identifying which autos are available for hire,” she said.

Around 70,000 autorickshaws ply in the capital.