‘You will save on lifestyle diseases’: Doctor explains how to tackle traffic stress while driving in India

A doctor recently took to X to explain why hiring a driver or using the premium feature of popular ride booking apps like Uber and Rapido is a far better option than driving yourself. Aditya Gupta, a paediatric oncologist explained via a tweet that for high-earning individuals - particularly those with an in-hand salary over Rs 2 lakh per month should stop driving cars themselves and hire a chauffeur or book premium services from top cab apps. He argued that this will yield several benefits and will also save costs.

“You’ll save a lot of headache/stress and prevent lifestyle diseases and their resultant costs. It would be cheaper in the long run.”

Gupta was reacting to a post shared by an X user who compared how cities such as New York and Chicago had lower traffic problems than India. He explained that driving is less stressful in these cities as people tend to follow traffic rules.

Netizens React

One X user, responding to Gupta’s post, wrote that such an advise is feasible only for those earning more than Rs 4 lakh per month. To which Gupta replied: “True. Agree with you. You’re right if single earning with family (one kid). I’m specifically talking as 2L per person. So dual income at 4L. Single person (unmarried) - 2L..”

Another pointed out that such a decision might not be possible with such income if one has kids or caring for an ageing relative. He also claimed that drivers in metropolitan areas are now demanding as much as Rs 20-25K per month fees.

“Hiring a driver is about 20-25k a month at least in big cities. It’s unaffordable for someone earning 2lacs a month if he has a family to support. As for premier Ubers they are so dirty and stinky that getting a disease from riding in one is likely…” said one X user.

Some netizens had more radical solutions and advised people to ride a bike and avoid cabs.