Mumbai Public Transport

"Mumbai Get around

Most of Mumbai's inhabitants rely on public transport to and from their workplace due to the lack of parking spaces, traffic bottlenecks, and generally poor road conditions, especially in the monsoon.

By taxi

Taxis are cheap and plentiful ($50 would be worth a lot of taxi rides). Most taxis in Mumbai are small-medium sized cars, painted black-and-yellow (black on lower body and yellow on roof). You can hail a cab off the streets. However, many are quite rickety and carry mechanical fare meters that are often tampered and where payment is through a complicated system of calculating meter charge by a certain figure (all taxis are supposed to carry a tariff card that simplifies matters). Also, according to law, a black-and-yellow taxi driver cannot refuse a fare. If a driver does refuse, normally a threat to complain to the nearest cop usually does the trick.

* However, if you want a comfortable, air-conditioned ride at a small surcharge of 25 percent over normal taxis it's best to travel by branded cab services that operate at government-approved tariffs. These services operate modern fleets with well trained drivers. You can get them at 30-60 minutes notice, they are clean, air-conditioned, equipped with digital, tamper-proof meters, punctual, honest, and GPS-equipped-monitored, which makes them far secure at any time. If you're using a mobile phone, you receive an SMS with the driver's name, mobile number and car number 30 minutes before scheduled departure. Charges are Rs 15 for the first km and Rs 13 for subsequent kms, with a 25 percent night surcharge (midnight to 5AM). Some can even be booked online.

Some branded cab services are:

*
o First Cars (+91-9766311830)http://www.firstcars.in/ email: firstcars@gmail.com
o Mega Cab (+91-22-42424242)http://www.megacabs.com/
o Meru Cab (+91-22-44224422)http://www.merucabs.com/
o Fulora Gold Cab (+91-22-32449999 / 32443333)
o Priyadarshini Cabs (especially for single women/a service managed by women)(+91-9820221107)

The unbranded ones are:

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o City Cool Cabs, +91 22 2216 4466, +91 22 2218 9620, +91 22 5688 4466.
o Cool Cab, +91 22 2490 5151, +91 22 2490 5152.

some private car rental company with huge fleet of car on cheap rate in mumbai close to international airport

* car rental mumbai -(9870493800) http://www.carrentalmumbai.net

* The standard Black-and-Yellow taxi is not air-conditioned and generally uses mechanical meters. Calculating the fare is done by matching the meter reading with a tariff card to arrive at the final payable fare. The minimum fare is Rs. 13. Prepaid plans have the fare collected at the start and thus the meter reading is not applicable. Night charges apply from midnight to 5 AM when the fare is marked up by 25%.

Large items of luggage are chargeable at approximately Rs.10 per piece. Refer to the tariff card. If you have extra pieces of luggage, the boot (i.e. trunk) of the taxi will not provide sufficient space - one large suitcase is all that will fit there. Hiring a taxi with a top carrier will be better. Top carriers can accommodate up to three large suitcases. Before starting the journey, ensure that the luggage is securely fastened to the carrier.

Generally, the only way to call for the standard taxi is to hail one on the street. This will not be a problem if you are inside city limits (i.e. North Central Bombay and below). If you are in the suburbs, it will be difficult to find a taxi as they have been out-competed by the cheaper auto-rickshaws. If you don't want to hire an auto, you will have to ask around and find a way to call for a taxi.

Follow the queue system to board a taxi. Quite frequently, tourists and new visitors are mobbed by unscrupulous taxi drivers. Most drivers are honest, but the dishonest ones tend to cluster around railway stations and airports where they can more easily find suckers. Unless you are taking a prepaid taxi, always ask taxis to go by the meter. At the start of the journey, ensure that the meter is visible and shows the flag-down fare/meter reading.

The maximum number of passengers allow ed for a trip officially is four — three in the back seat and one in the front. Seat belts are not mandatory for taxi passengers and most standard black and yellow taxis will not have them installed, though the branded ones would have them.

By auto-rickshaw

Auto-rickshaws are only allowed to operate beyond Bandra in the western suburbs and beyond Sion in the central suburbs. They are not issued licenses in the downtown areas.

Before departing, ensure that the meter is visible and shows the flag-down reading as 1.00. If the the number is higher, insist that the driver flags it down once again. The minimum fare is Rs. 9. The meter remains at 1.00 for the first 2 km and every 0.10 movement indicates approx 200 meters (ie 1.00 for every 0.2 kms). The fare is Rs. 5 for every km, except for the first two kms for which it is Rs. 9. A simple way to calculate the fare is to multiply the reading by 10 and subtract 1 to get the fare in rupees. So if the meter shows 2.20, then the fare payable is Rs. 21. (and its 4.4 km). Similarly a reading of 4.90 would mean you have to pay Rs. 48 (and you traveled approximately 9.8 km). The meter also keeps ticking if you are waiting and/or are stuck in traffic. It's quite handy to have a copy of the meter card issued by The Mumbai Traffic Police.

Auto-rickshaws are slower than cars and have terrible suspensions. Pregnant ladies are most strongly advised not to travel by auto-rickshaws since the combination of rash driving, poor suspensions, and horrible road conditions have quite often led to serious complications. The auto-rickshaw is a slow vehicle and not recommended for very long distances.

By bus

Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (known as BEST) provides efficient and comprehensive services connecting up all places of the city and the suburbs. Some services also link the city with the extended suburbs like Navi Mumbai, Thane, and Mira-Bhayanadar areas. Seats are almost always occupied. There are bus stops all over the city. There is usually a crowd and and queue. You have to get in through the rear entrance and off at the front. Tickets are issued by a uniformed "conductor" after you get in. Special seats are marked for "Ladies", "Senior Citizens", "Handicapped", "Expectant Women", and "Women with infants". They can get in from the front.

Buses run from 5AM to midnight. Selected routes run beyond these timings, but much less often. Average frequency between buses ranges from five to 30 min depending on the route. Fares are reasonable and buses can be travelled during peak hours, unlike trains which are far too crowded. Some trunk routes do get extremely crowded however. Peak hours also have traffic snarls which may depend on the area traversed and the state of the roads.

What connects Electric supply and Transport?

BEST got into transport by starting a tram company. Now, of course, it runs buses that run on diesel, not electricity. The company is still in charge of electricity distribution for South and Central Mumbai.

Buses are numbered and the final destination is marked on the front in Marathi and on the side in English. Generally, buses around the city and trunk routes would be in the 1-199 series. Buses in the western suburbs would be the 200 series while those plying in the central and eastern suburbs would be in the 300 and 400 series. Services to Navi, Mumbai are in the 500 series and buses to the Mira-Bhayander area are in the 700 series. The BEST website has a nifty tool that will help you plan your journey.

BEST has introduced the "DayPass" (Cost for adults — RS. 40, for children it's less), a ticket valid all day (until midnight) on all buses except Express and A/C services.

By train

Most people travel in Mumbai using the Suburban Rail Network commonly referred to as "Locals". Mumbai has an extensive network, with three lines — the Western Line, the Central Main Line, and the Harbour Line. Mumbai is a linear city and the Western Line travels from Churchgate to Virar via Mumbai's Western Suburbs. The Central Main Line travels from Mumbai CST (Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus), aka VT Victoria Terminus to Kalyan via Mumbai's Central Suburbs and Thane, with some services running beyond to Karjat, Khopoli, and Kasara. The interchange point for these two lines is Dadar.

The Harbour Line has a common stretch between Mumbai CST (aka VT Victoria Terminus) and Vadala. The harbour line splits into two spurs, the main one running to Mumbai's Eastern Suburbs and Navi, Mumbai, up to Panvel. The Interchange point of this line with the Central Main Line is at Kurla. The other spur of the Harbour Line runs up to Mahim on the Western Line and runs parallel up to Andheri. The interchange stations with the Western line are Bandra and Andheri.

Trains on all lines start operations after 4AM and close operations between midnight and 1AM. Second class travel is very cheap. However, it is advisable to buy first class tickets as the economy class is extremely crowded. First Class can be quite expensive and if four people are travelling together, a taxi might be better.

Avoid using local trains during rush hour (first class or otherwise). Rush hour is between 8:30AM and 10:30AM towards CST (VT) and Churchgate and between 5:30PM and 8:30PM in the opposite direction. If you must transit during rush hour, avoid, at all costs, standing near the train car entry, as you will be swamped by a frantic, every man for himself, stampede of men attempting to get on the car. Take no offense if you are pushed and shoved about, as passengers jostle for a spot. As you near your exit station, ensure that you are as close as possible to the train door, as experienced commuters, will be begin the mad run to be first on, or off, the car before the car comes to a full stop! If you stand any chance of getting on/off before the train depart, you must be equally aggressive in your focus to exit/enter, remember no one will take offense if you make contact with others, as you wriggle by! Last, but not least, exiting/entering a train before it comes to a full stop is not something to be taken lightly, one misstep can send a person onto the rails with an amazing ease! Leave the stunts to the experienced locals.

There are special coaches for women on both classes. These are generally less crowded and safer. But very late at night, it might actually be safer to travel by the general coach than the first-class women's coach, as the latter may be absolutely empty except for you. Sometimes they have a cop guarding the coaches, but sometimes they won't. Use your judgment.

The Mumbai Metro is currently under construction and is due to be completed in the coming years.

By ferry

These are a few intra-city ferry services:

* Gateway of India — Elephanta caves — Fast boats and Catamarans operated by private operators. These are moderately priced. This is the only way to get to Elephanta Caves.
* Marve Jetty (Malad) — Manori Jetty — Cheap ferry (by BEST) connecting Manori and Gorai. Also services for Esselworld (Amusement Park).
* Versova (Andheri) — Madh Jetty — Cheap ferry connecting Madh/Erangal/Aksa/Marve.
* Gorai (Borivali) — Cheap ferry connecting Gorai Beach/Esselworld. and also there is masti.

By car

Travel Agents and Hotels can arrange private chauffeur driven cars to provide services. Expensive by comparison with taxis, they are the most trusted, secure, and comfortable way to travel around the city. Driving in India is difficult, because of poor driver discipline, but chauffeur services are very reasonable. These can be arranged by travel companies or online from the countries of origin. You can rent a car easily if you have not your own vehicle. Many Car rental agencies provide their best services in Mumbai. Savaari car rentals have a reputation for providing quality luxury car rentals in Mumbai as well as other major cities of India."