Each of us has a cab complaint story, ranging from mild inconvenience to plain horror. But a Mumbai-based author and his 11-year-old daughter lived a nightmare this Sunday after they took an app-based cab for a Pune-Mumbai drive and narrowly escaped death.
Dhaval Kulkarni has narrated his horror in a long Twitter post, tagging central and state authorities and cab aggregator Uber, hoping that his close shave will prompt safeguards to avoid a repeat.
Mr Kulkarni has said he was in Pune on Saturday to pick up his daughter and the two had a plan to return the next day. Their train tickets were on the waitlist, and the author eventually decided to travel by road.
The Uber driver, he wrote, was polite and had a 4.93 rating on the app. "When my daughter showed some signs of motion sickness, he voluntarily stopped the cab before a chemist for me to buy some medicines," he said, sharing his first impressions.
The author was not happy with the driver talking over the phone while driving, but decided not to get into an argument.
"Soon after we took the Expressway, the driver began yawning. He also drove rashly at times, cut lanes, and almost brushed against a truck. I asked him if he was sleepy or drowsy -- I had been able to gather from his conversations on the phone and our own small talk that he had come to Pune after picking up a customer early in the morning. But he said he was ok -- the yawning was being induced by the AC! I asked him to stop the car and splash some water on his face, which he did," Mr Kulkarni added.
The author then said he started small talk with the driver - a commonly used tactic that helps driver fight off sleep. Then, horror sruck.
"Soon after we descended the ghat and reached Khopoli, there was a truck bang in the middle of the carriageway. Even as I yelled at him to watch out, our car smashed into the rear end of the truck. The airbag activated and slammed against my chest. I was dazed and in immense pain from the impact but instinctively looked at the rear seat to check on my daughter. She was rattled but kept calm. Thankfully, the driver was OK. We were incredibly lucky to have not been tail-ended by another speeding car on the busy highway," Mr Kulkarni wrote.
The author shared photos of the damaged car, with airbags deployed due to the impact.
He then went on to share that the truck driver fled the spot without even checking on them.
"We got out of the car and walked to the edge of the road to take stock. My daughter had a bruise on her right leg. She saw that I was in tremendous pain and kept calm for she knew that her panic would add to my woes. The doting father in me is proud of her for her sense of maturity and understanding," Mr Kulkarni wrote.
He said a constable from Maharashtra Maharashtra Security Force reached the spot soon after the crash. A towing van and two RTO officials followed.
"The three left after inspecting the damage. They saw me doubled up in pain near the car. They did not send for first aid," Mr Kulkarni alleged.
He said the Uber driver flagged that the truck had braked in the middle of the road - heavy vehicles are mandated to use the far left lane, but the rule is rarely followed.
Mr Kulkarni said when he called up Uber, he was assured that another cab would be arranged so that he can continue his journey. "I received a text message saying that the taxi had arrived. I called up the driver multiple times, yet he refused to take my calls," he wrote.
"My breathing and speech were laboured and painful. Even the slightest movement of my upper body led to immense pain," he wrote.
The author got help only after a call to a senior IPS officer. A two-member police team reached the spot and called in an ambulance. Eventually, he reached a hospital and an X-ray examination found blunt trauma to his chest, but no broken bones.
The author blamed highway police, RTO officials and Uber for their poor response to an emergency situation. He tagged Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's office, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Uber, hoping his post would prompt necessary steps to prevent such incidents.
