Passengers turn to high-priced cab rides as IndiGo cancellations persist at RGIA

As mass IndiGo cancellations continued at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) on Saturday, several passengers facing urgent travel needs turned to alternative modes of transport. With 69 flights cancelled on Saturday, the demand for long-distance cab travel surged sharply.

A private cab operator at the airport said bookings had risen noticeably over the past four days. He explained that, on an average day, about 3,000 Uber cabs, 1,800 Ola cabs and another 1,000 private taxis operate from the airport. The cancellations, he said, had pushed travellers to spend amounts they would not have considered otherwise.

According to him, the past three days saw cab bookings to cities as far as Pune and Delhi at steep prices. “A cab to Pune was booked for ₹20,000 and just yesterday someone booked a cab to Delhi for ₹35,000,” he said.

For many stranded passengers, the choice was limited to either securing a train ticket or negotiating with cab operators. Ranjit, whose Chennai flight was cancelled on Saturday, said he was shocked by the quotes he received online.

“I casually checked cab options and one operator said the price to Chennai would be ₹15,000. That is double what I paid for the flight ticket and it also means a long road journey. The airline counters are crowded so I will wait to see whether any alternative is arranged. If not, I might have to negotiate and take the cab since I need to resume work on Monday,” he said.

International travellers also found themselves reassessing their plans. Ryan, a visitor from the United States, said he was trying to reach Jamshedpur for a wedding when they discovered that the flight fare had climbed to around ₹40,000. “Our next option is either a train or a cab. We are not taking the cab since we were told it is a two-day drive and it might be risky as we do not speak the local language,” he said. Ryan then planned to try for a tatkal train ticket instead.

The cascading disruptions continued to ripple across the airport, forcing passengers to weigh cost, time and safety as they attempted to navigate their way out of Hyderabad.