Burning a hole: Petrol price rise hits conveyance bill

CHENNAI: Govardan, a media executive, who bought a new i10 last year is a puzzled man. His budget has gone for a toss. Fuel bills, for which he had budgeted Rs 2,000 a month, has gone up by nearly 30% since April 2010. He now plans to restrict the use of his car to 20 days in a month and ride the bike around for the remaining period. “Thank god, I didn't sell my motorcycle,” he says.

Govardan is not an isolated case of a middle-class person limiting the use of four-wheeler. Spiralling crude prices have put many in a similar situation. Two steep hikes in a month and six since April 2010 ain't good news. But just how ouch-worthy is the petrol pinch? TOI does the mileage maths across metros.

Last weekend's Rs 2.50 hike was the sixth in this financial year, with the last two mark-ups adding 4% even in the most motorist friendly city in the country - Delhi. Since April 1, Delhi's petrol prices have gone up by Rs 10.44 per litre.

In cities where the petrol prices were higher to begin with, the bite hurts more. Take Chennai which has seen its prices go up by Rs 11.23 a litre since last April. The only saving grace is that distances in this city aren't as far-flung as Delhi. The average commute in a day is around 20-25 km which means a small car owner will need to spend around Rs 450-600 more on gas bills every month. For bike owners, the pinch is lower at around Rs 150 per month.

Sedan owners get lower mileage of around 10-12km/ litre, so the pinch is sharper at around Rs 1,800-2,000 a month. For bike owners, the mileage offered by popular models like Hero Honda Splendor is around 65 km per litre. So the price pinch works out to around Rs 300-400 per month.

But given the way commuting expenses have mounted, many car users are now taking to car pooling more seriously. “Increments and bonuses are expected to be good this year. But that does not mean that you waste them on fuel bills. I am planning to use the office intranet car pool facility more,” Balaji, a software engineer with Infosys, said.

Companies are also encouraging employees to opt for car-pooling. “Cognizant has built a platform where associates who drive to work can interact with each other and plan their day to share car facilities,” said Premkumar Pandurangam, director, sustainability, at Cognizant.