​50 Minutes of Chaos: The Reality of the Mumbai Commute

Today I start writing this blog post out of frustration, tiredness, and just anger. Not the way I imagined my first blog to be, but I guess we are going to the observations directly.
​I live in Kandivali West and thus have to travel to my school, JNS in Juhu, around 50 minutes every day. I take a rickshaw from my apartment to the metro station and then another one from the other metro station to my school. I used to think I'd get used to it, and it's been 3 months travelling the same way now, but the truth is nobody prepares you for this.
​It was originally calmer when the rains weren't there, but then again, the Mumbai heat and humidity was a pain, and now the infamous rains and traffic. First, you struggle to find an auto-rickshaw. The constant rejections from drivers are absolutely annoying, especially in the rain. Then comes the metro, which is even worse during peak times; there are simply too many people. And then again, the same population competes to get a rickshaw at the station, all with the same aim to reach their desired destination on time.
​Another thing that I've been observing more and more by the day is the sheer number of fights, heated exchanges, and road rages that are happening everywhere I go. I don't think this is normal, and I don't think it's all due to the mistakes one or the other makes. I myself get infuriated by how tough and inconvenient this daily up and down gets, and understand, but also make sure to control it, for it is always better to choose to let it go in these situations, especially due to the recent incidents and pointless arguments being a waste of time.
​Somewhere or the other, I feel the system is at fault. How is it that even after years of witnessing that Mumbai experiences the same old traffic, how certain traffic signals just don't work when we need them to, how intelligent systems keep failing, and technology always falters? The rain keeps choking drains; we all seem to experience such small inconveniences in our daily routines, but always let it be. I feel that is where the issue arises: the small issues compound to mental stress, which comes out as arrogance. The ignorance at these early stages turns into larger, concerning, repetitive problems. If the system doesn't ensure its absolute best at giving the people the most comfortable and effortless travel experience, how can they expect utmost efficiency from those very citizens who complain to oneself about this very struggle?
​Considering that our country is moving from developing to developed, I believe that these certain situations should be paid heed just as importantly as other arenas, especially at a metropolitan city's level. This was just my observation and thoughts on this commute inconsistency, as I felt it is quite overlooked and could be contributing to different problems somewhere. This might sound like venting, but it's just the reality of the picture I see every single day

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