With a steep increase in petrol and diesel prices, over 80 per cent of the autorickshaws in the State were converted to use LPG as fuel source, as its cheaper. But they are finding it difficult to fuel their autos with fewer numbers of AutoGas stations
The Tamil Nadu Autorickshaw Workers’ Union general secretary M Shivaji said that with the fuel prices going up over the years, autorickshaws plying in the city converted to LPG from petrol or diesel.
He said that, however, the drivers who converted their vehicles to LPG are facing problems when they go to fuel stations and wait for a long time.
“There are less than 30 AutoGas stations in the city, catering to 70,000 to 75,000 autorickshaws. At times, it takes almost half an hour to fuel up due to long queues. Outside Chennai, it is even worse,” he said.
K Govindan, an autorickshaw driver in Kolathur, said that after switching to LPG, the biggest problem he faces is locating an auto LPG filling station.
“Unlike petrol bunks, there are very few LPG stations in the city. So it remains crowded all the time and we have to fill up in the morning itself to avoid searching for a station in the latter part of the day,” he said.
Besides being more environment-friendly, the running and maintenance costs of an LPG vehicle is lesser than the others. But LPG-run autorickshaws require Rs 1,500-1,800 every month for maintenance, which is negligible for diesel and petrol run autos.
