No this is not an article for calling cabs using SMS. Instead it is simply about the Mumbai traffic police website that I just came across while surfing the net. A very interesting website which I feel is worth a look for all especially for people like me who get irritated with cabs refusing to take you because the distance is too near or they just don’t feel like taking you. One would never imagine that the Traffic police would put in so much effort by going online to make the life of the general public a little easier.
The Mumbai traffic website which was launched this Feb has some very interesting features.
Some of the services provided on the website are:-
Area wise List of Pay & Park, Shopping Malls & Multiplex in Mumbai
Traffic Police Signals
Offenses and penalties
Vehicular Population of Mumbai
Accident chart
In case of accidents
But the primary reason to blog this was to highlight the fact that travelers can also lodge complaints against Cab & Auto rickshaw drivers and traffic conditions and other such issues trough a mobile phone or on the internet.
Travelers can SMS to 3040 to inform about accidents, give suggestions, lodge complaints etc. users can also register the auto/cab driver’s details and after which the police will take over.
I also came across some interesting messages on their website.
Reach your destination and not your destiny
Everyone knows the tortoise came first, Go slow
It’s great to see that the traffic dept have given a serious thought considering that travelers really do face a lot of problems with the cabbies and rickshaw drivers
One can also register themselves online and receive regular traffic updates on their mobile phones. The mobile service is provided in partnership with reliance communication one of India’s largest communication companies
Subscribers of mobile operators like BPL, MTNL, Tata Indicom and Hutch can also send a SMS directly to the Traffic Police on 3040 for information related to traffic jams, accidents, lodge complaints and even give suggestions on traffic management. A similar such service is already in operation with Reliance Communications, whereby any Mumbaikar can call ‘Reliance Traffic Talk’ on 30403040 and can use the interactive services, in Marathi, Hindi or English, for traffic related issues.
Travelers can also lodge complaints online by providing some details about the Cab/Auto driver like the number plate and other details for other complaints. They should look at getting the youth online & engaging them trough which they would be able to educate the youth on responsible driving as there are so many cases of rash driving that keep coming up so often in the media. They should also look at having a 24/7 live chat option.
There is also a website for delhi traffic police that provides similar services. by the way i just told a few of my friends about this service and the immediate response that i got was "What is the number?" i guess everyone has really had it with the cabbies. 
