Getting Around Mumbai: Taxis, Autos, Buses and the Metro

Nobody hands you a map of how Mumbai actually moves. You learn it the hard way — waving down a taxi that won’t go south, waiting for an auto at Bandra that legally can’t cross the flyover, or standing on a BEST bus stop wondering if the number on the front means anything. The good news is that the logic underneath is simple once someone lays it out, and in the last two years the city has quietly rewired itself: a fully underground Metro now runs from Cuffe Parade to the airport, and app-cabs, buses and the old kaali-peeli all live on the same few rules. Here is how a local decides, trip by trip.

The single most useful thing to hold in your head is the north–south divide. Mumbai splits into the “island city” — everything south of Mahim and Sion, the old town people call SoBo — and the suburbs stretching north. Autos live in the suburbs. Taxis, buses and the Metro cover the south. Get that one distinction right and most of your decisions make themselves.

The black-and-yellow taxi (kaali-peeli)

The kaali-peeli is the workhorse of South Mumbai, where autos are banned. The romantic Premier Padmini finally left the roads on 30 October 2023, retired under a rule that deregisters cabs over twenty years old, so today’s fleet is boxy CNG hatchbacks — Wagon Rs, Altos, Eecos — still painted the same black and yellow.

They run on a meter, and as of the fare revision on 1 February 2025 the minimum is Rs 31 for the first 1.5 km, then roughly Rs 20.66 per km. A short hop across Colaba or Fort runs Rs 40–80; Nariman Point to Bandra is more like Rs 350–450 depending on traffic. Between midnight and 5 am a 25% night surcharge applies, and it is legitimate — the driver will show you a fare card. Insist the meter is running from the start; if a driver quotes a flat number instead, that is your cue to find another.

Cool Cabs

The blue-and-silver Cool Cabs are the air-conditioned cousins, useful in a Mumbai May. They start higher — around Rs 48 for the first 1.5 km and about Rs 32 per km after the same February 2025 revision — so you pay for the comfort, but on a long, sweaty crawl it can be worth it.

Autos: a suburbs-only animal

North of the divide, the auto-rickshaw rules everything. It is nimble, cheap and everywhere. The meter minimum is Rs 26 for the first 1.5 km and about Rs 17.14 per km, with the same 25% night surcharge after midnight. Most suburban trips — a station to your flat, a dinner two neighbourhoods over — land between Rs 30 and Rs 120.

The no-auto line: Bandra and Sion

Here is the rule newcomers trip over most: autos cannot cross into the island city. On the western side they stop at the Bandra fire station; on the central side, at the Sion depot. Below those points — Dharavi’s edge down to Colaba — it is illegal for a three-wheeler to ply, because the older southern roads are too narrow to absorb them. So if you auto in from the suburbs, expect to be turned out at the boundary and to switch to a taxi, bus or the Metro for the last leg. Within the suburbs, look for shared-auto stands near stations, where a fixed short route is split three ways for a few rupees a head — the fastest cheap way to cover a station’s last mile.

BEST buses: the island city’s backbone

The red BEST buses are how South Mumbai does the job autos do up north, and they are absurdly cheap. After the May 2025 revision — the first big one since 2019 — non-AC fares start at Rs 10 (up to 5 km) and top out at Rs 60; the air-conditioned buses start at Rs 12 and reach Rs 65. For a couple of hundred metres more than a walk, a bus down Marine Drive or along the Fort costs less than a bottle of water.

The thing that transformed BEST for outsiders is the Chalo app. It tracks buses live so you know whether the 123 is two minutes or twenty away, sells mobile tickets and passes, and even shows how crowded the approaching bus is. Buy tickets on the app or pay the conductor cash; keep the ticket until you step off.

The Metro: the map just changed

For years the Metro was one east–west line that missed most of the places tourists go. That is over.

Line 3, the Aqua Line

The Aqua Line (Line 3) — Mumbai’s first fully underground metro — has been running end to end since 8 October 2025, 33.5 km and 27 stations from Cuffe Parade to Aarey. Crucially, it threads through the exact spine visitors use: CSMT, Churchgate, Mumbai Central, Dadar, BKC, and both airport terminals, T1 and T2. Fares run Rs 10–80, trains from roughly 6 am to 10.30 pm (a later start on Sundays). If you are going airport-to-town or town-to-BKC, this is now almost always faster and cheaper than a cab in traffic.

Lines 1, 2A and 7

The elevated Line 1 (Blue) still does the original Versova–Andheri–Ghatkopar run — the quickest way across the western-to-central suburbs, fares Rs 10–40. The Yellow (2A) and Red (7) lines run up the western suburbs from Dahisar — the Red Line now stretching toward Mira–Bhayandar — at Rs 10–50. They are elevated, breezy and skip the road entirely.

One card for all of it: Mumbai 1

Rather than queue for a token each time, pick up a Mumbai 1 card — the National Common Mobility Card. It is contactless, currently issued free at station counters, recharges from Rs 100, and works as pay-as-you-go across Metro Lines 1, 2A, 7 and 3 and on BEST buses. One tap, one card, whole city.

Ride-hailing: Uber, Ola, Rapido

Uber and Ola work exactly as you would expect, and both also let you book an auto in the app (Uber Auto, Ola Auto), which sidesteps the “meter or no meter” haggle. Under Maharashtra’s 2025 aggregator policy, surge is capped at 1.5 times the base fare and rates are pegged to the official RTA fares, so app-cabs no longer spike to absurd multiples in the rain — though in practice a monsoon evening will still test that. Rapido is the third major app, strong on autos and bikes.

A note on bike taxis

Bike taxis were formally licensed in Maharashtra in 2025 — Ola, Uber and Rapido all got provisional approvals, with fares from Rs 15 for the first 1.5 km, well under half a cab. They are brilliant for beating a jam solo. Be aware the licensing has been contested and repeatedly challenged, so availability can flicker on and off; treat them as a handy option, not a guaranteed one, and skip them if you are not comfortable pillion in city traffic.

And the local train, in one paragraph

The suburban rail — Western (to Churchgate), Central and Harbour (both from CSMT) — is the true circulatory system, and for any long north–south trip it beats everything on time and price. As a newcomer, avoid the crush hours (roughly 8.30–11 am towards town, 5.30–8.30 pm away), ride first class or the calmer ladies’ compartment (first-class coaches halt at red-and-yellow striped pillars, ladies’ at green-and-yellow), and keep the M-Indicator app open for platforms, timings and fares. It is not a gentle introduction, but once it clicks, nothing moves you faster.

FAQ

Why won’t a taxi in town take me to the suburbs — or an auto take me to Colaba? Autos are licensed only for the suburbs and legally can’t enter the island city past Bandra or Sion; taxis can go anywhere but drivers sometimes refuse long or return-empty trips. Refusal is technically an offence — note the badge number, or just book on an app.

What’s the cheapest way from the airport into town? The Aqua Line Metro (Line 3) now runs from both terminals into South Mumbai for under Rs 100. If you have heavy bags or land late, use the prepaid taxi counter at T1/T2 — a fixed fare that avoids surge and negotiation.

Do I need cash? Less than you used to. Metro, BEST (via Chalo) and app-cabs all take digital payment, and the Mumbai 1 card covers Metro and buses. Keep small notes for kaali-peelis and street autos.

Is there a night surcharge? Yes — 25% extra on metered taxis and autos between midnight and 5 am. It is official and shown on the fare card.

Which one app should a first-timer download? M-Indicator for trains, Chalo for buses, and either Uber or Ola for cabs and autos. Those three cover almost everything.

The bottom line

Match the mode to the map. In South Mumbai, think taxi, bus or Metro; in the suburbs, think auto, Metro or local train; for anything long and north–south, the train wins. Keep a Mumbai 1 card topped up, M-Indicator and Chalo on your phone, and an app-cab as backup for the rain. Do that and the city that looks chaotic from the pavement turns out to run on a handful of simple, learnable rules.