Car rental in India

It is practically impossible to pick up much speed on Indian roads, as the road surface is often poor quality (if there is any at all), and in the cities many speed bumps appear seemingly anywhere. The speed limit in built-up areas in India is 50 km/h.

In a country with a billion inhabitants, an excess of cars is one of the key problems on the roads. Finding a free parking space in the big cities is very difficult, so drivers skilfully park vehicles very close to each other. Many car parks, including those at hotels, are free of charge. The cost of paid parking within an organised car park is one of the lowest in the world (less than $2 a day).

Tourists driving a car in India should know that the laws in different states may vary. For example, in Kerala there is a total ban on alcohol for drivers. In the rest of India the allowable blood alcohol limit is 0.3 ppm.

In India, there are practically no road signs or markings. Along with cars, elephants, camels and rickshaws move along the streets. Both pedestrians and drivers often ignore traffic rules, so foreign drivers should be very careful in this apparent chaos.

• A motorist preparing to overtake must indicate their intention by sounding the horn.
• In India, pedestrians crossing the street anywhere is the norm. You have to be prepared for such manoeuvres.
• In Kolkata you should clearly follow the traffic signals. In other cities, this is not always the case.
• It is advisable for the driver of a rental car to have an Indian-style driving licence in order to obtain insurance in case of an accident.
• Traffic in India keeps to the left.
• If a cow is standing in the road, a motorist must stop. A driver who runs over a cow can receive a 7-year prison sentence.
• At an intersection, the first to go is the one who reached it first and signalled.
• Priority on the road is usually given to larger and more powerful trucks.

The main motor fuel in the country is diesel. Petrol in India can be difficult to find even in big cities. The average cost of a litre of diesel is 55 rupees, and petrol is 70 rupees. Prices in different cities across the country may differ slightly.

In India, all long-distance routes with good-quality surfacing are toll roads. To drive on them the driver has to pay 10-30 rupees. The roads in the cities themselves are generally satisfactory, but in the provinces they are often narrow, unpaved and have many sharp bends.