How much for Central Station?

“How much for Central Station?”

“Sir, you tell how much will you give!”

“It’s ok. You tell!”

After some silence, with a smile he said, “70 bucks, Sir”

Thought myself “Guy seems reasonable. No need to bargain much!” Got into the auto and told him “Ok boss, make it 60” (It’s a sin to not bargain with Auto drivers Chennai!)

“No Sir, not much business today!”

Yeah, 10 bucks won’t make a big difference to me, but may not be the case for him. So, didn’t talk more about the fare.

“Which route should I take, Sir?” he asked

I replied, “If you are a Vijay (Tamil film Star with huge number of fans following!) Fan, take the Ponamalli High Rd – You can get a glimpse of his huge cut-out of the forthcoming flick, Kurvi; Else take the Mount Road.”

He said enthusiastically “I will take the Mount Road, Sir”

“Boss, please stop calling me ‘Sir’. Also, I am much younger than you!”

Came his next question “Ok nga, should I go faster or slower?”

“I have lots of time. You can go at your own pace!”

I found the guy interesting. After a couple of minutes, I initiated the conversation, “I would like to understand auto-walas – their concerns and a little about their businesses”

He started revealing the secrets – business models, strategy & revenues etc. Though he didn’t use the business jargons, I would say he’s pretty smart in business.

First, he said how much he makes per day –

Gross Revenue = Rs.800-900 (1200, if it’s a lucky day!)
Fuel Expenses = 300
Auto Rent = 150 (Most of the auto-walas drive the autos from Settu – They need to give Rs.150 per day excluding maintenance charges!)
Operating profit = 400-450
Daily personal expenses = 150
Take home = 250-300
All figures are “per day average"

I told, “Hmm, that doesn’t seem like great money for someone who works very hard from early morning till late night. So, why can’t you try to increase your revenue by improving the occupancy rate?” (Yeah, this is what Airlines try to do!)

Came the reply, “We, the auto-walas are bound to a particular area. My Auto, for e.g., belongs to Anna Nagar – In our area, we can pick up any customer. In other areas, we can pick up customers, only if those autos don’t want to pick them up. We begin the day from our area and after every trip we try to come back to our area. On the way, we drive slowly and try to get customers. We also try to take the route of crowded places. After 8 PM, we go only to areas near our homes. There are auto drivers having different schedules – people starting very early in the morning and going early evening; starting late and drive till mid-night; there are night-drivers as well”

I exclaimed “Looks like a tough business!”

We were half-way through the station. After hearing my sympathetic response, he paused for a moment and said “Sorry, sir. Really Sorry, sir!”

He opened up, “Sir, I had drinks today and sorry to drive you when I am drunk!”

“Hmm, what did you drink – Beer, Whisky, Brandy or Rum?”, I asked inquisitively

He tried to justify --“Just a very little of Brandy. Really Sorry, Sir. I had some major issues with my uncle. That’s why drank.”

I lectured, “Yeah, I don’t say you shouldn’t drink – it’s up to you. But not while you are driving - you are risking the lives of travelers like us.”

He replied apologetically “What to do sir, we lead such a life. It’s not just me. 90% of the auto-drivers drink and drive. If you are really concerned, I can get another auto for you, Sir”.

I was astonished with that unverifiable and alarming statistics he gave. I replied “It’s ok. I don’t mind. Next time, when you take someone in your auto, please avoid drinking”

He was silent for few minutes. I guess he felt guilty.

I began the conversation again “So, who are the major pain-points and competitors for auto-drivers”

“Traffic police and share-autos”, came the immediate response!

He continued, “Share-autos charge 5-10 bucks per passenger. People who want to travel in the main roads have almost ruled-out using expensive autos. We can take only interior & long routes that these guys don’t cover”

I thought myself – The share-autos ensure that their vehicles run continuously – Theirs is a high volume business and normal-auto is a high margin business.

I told him “Yeah, added to that MTC (the Govt. owned metro buses, which are very economical) is planning to introduce the hugely successful 'mini-buses' concept in Chennai, I was told 1000 of them!”

He was smart -- “Yeah, it would affect our business to some extent, but share-autos would be heavily affected. It’s their direct competitor!”

I was about to reach the station. I just wanted to conclude the talk with some food for thought for him. “You could reduce your personal expenses by nearly 50%, if you reduce taking drinks. Your take home salary per day could increase as much as Rs.50." Keeping a serious face, he replied "Sure, Sir. I will try to reduce drinking."

I concluded "Have you heard of this Rs.1 lakh car by Tata. Once it’s available, will you buy one and start driving it instead of auto?”

I didn’t expect that reply from him.

“I am completely aware of that, Sir. I am a mechanic myself and have a diploma in the same. In fact, I was the proud owner of a reasonably big car mechanic shop – we did all sorts of things – servicing, painting, repairing.. everything!! But.. but.. unfortunately, I encountered a huge loss of more than 5 lakhs rupees and I had to close down the shop. So, I resorted to driving a rented auto”

We were in front of the station. I was very much interested in knowing the reasons for such a colossal loss, but time and the place didn’t permit. I just handed over 70 bucks and patted on his back saying “Don’t bother, your dream business will prosper soon. All the best!”

With bright eyes and smiling face he bid adieu “Thank you very much, Sir!”