Ticketing device may replace pre-paid auto booths

The City’s pre-paid autorickshaw stands are draining the manpower of Bangalore Traffic Police and the department is now looking at alternative ways to reduce burden on the cops.

Known for being gadget-friendly, the traffic police may soon replace the pre-paid auto counters with hand-held electronic ticketing machines, similar to the ones used in BMTC and KSRTC buses.
On Saturday, the auto stand outside a prominent mall was gifted the ticketing machine by the mall management.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, M A Saleem, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) said that a presentation from a private company got his department keen on implementing the technology.

Apart from replacing the cumbersome, space-occupying ticket booths at pre-paid auto stands, the machine will be easy to use for the traffic police. It will also help in increasing transparency of the policemen. There is a rise in the number of complaints from commuters who claim that there is a nexus between the traffic cops manning auto stands and the autorickshaw drivers, who loot the public.Implementing the ticketing machines will go a long way in reducing this mistrust, he said.

Once a commuter comes to the auto stand, the traffic cop is required to enter the autorickshaw registration number and feed the destination of the passenger into the machine. The passenger gets a printed slip immediately.

Saleem said that the department would start the service at pre-paid auto stands equipped with computers.

“We will start the service in 15 more stands where computers are used. They will be introduced on a trial basis for two weeks to see how the device works and whether commuters prefer it to the computer,” he said.

Though there is no need for a booth as such, Saleem felt it had symbolic value and also provided shade to the traffic cops.

The Traffic Police are also looking at integrating the machine with the Traffic Management Centre to analyse the pattern of the use of autos by people and study the peak hour traffic.