The Bombay Motor Car Co. Ltd. was formed in 1904 to sell & service motorcars. By 1913 there were over 1500 regd. motor car owners in the Bombay Presidency. The cost of obtaining a driving licence was Rs.2/- & it needed to be renewed every year.
In 1927 petrol was avble in Presidency towns. BMCCL had branches/agents to sell petrol in Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Jullunder, Umballa, Delhi, Agra, Cawnpore & Lucknow. Manuals were published to advise Europeans wanting to drive in India incl. helpful Hindustani phrases.
"Usually a prudent native stops, dismounts, and draws well to the side
as a car goes by. Everything gives way to the motor car in India,
particularly if driven by a white sahib...Finally, the motorist should
be warned that in the Bombay and Madras Presidencies there exists the
old-fashioned and irritating system of raising funds for the upkeep of
the roads by the establishment of toll-houses every few miles. The usual
charge is eight annas". From India for the Motorist - 1913.
Hament
Hament
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