Why do people walk fast in Mumbai

In Mumbai, people walk faster than the national average. You observe people in Mumbai and you observe people in Delhi or any other part of the country, you will realize the difference in matter of seconds. They are fast.

British Council conducted this study where they wanted to find out the fastest walkers in the world. Obviously none of the Indian cities are in the list.

I did the experiment myself and as expected Mumbai is at number 1. It takes a Mumbaikar 9.3 seconds to walk 60 feets. A Singaporean takes 10.55 seconds to do the same task. Another thing we Indians can be proud of.

So why do people walk fast in Mumbai? Lets put some hypotheses and try talking to people and finding out the reasons.

Hypothesis 1
Transportation is limited to trains, buses and taxis/autos and hence they need to walk fast to catch them on time.

Unlike other parts of the country where they don’t have a timetable, Buses and Trains are very punctual in Mumbai. You can tally your watch with the train timings. And every time a train is late, they announce that the train would be late by 10 minutes or 5 minutes or whatever. And on top of everything else, they apologize for the delay. Something unheard of in Delhi, Calcutta, Bangalore or Chennai.

Hypothesis 2
People in Mumbai are health conscious.

People are innovative. People like alternative ways to exercise. Gymming is old fashioned. They decided that railway stations would have numerous overhead bridges (with at least 100 steps to reach the top and another 100 to get down) and these bridges would give them opportunity to exercise while going to work. Yet again would save time and money.

Hypothesis 3
They all are (rather blissfully ignorant) part of the classic rat race where no one can ever emerge as a winner.

So here is that rat race everyone talks about and everyone knows they are a part. People still fall for it. People still participate and people still run and you still don’t win. Everyone can see everyone else walking fast and no one wants to be left behind (Mr. Darwin would get angry). What do you do? Walk faster and others walk even faster. And the vicious circle goes on forever.

Hypothesis 4
Just like that. There is nothing better to do. Lets walk fast. Sweet and simple.
Hypothesis 5
Research says that people who walk fast have a purpose in life. They have a different vision of life and they are task oriented. They are achievers. With about a couple of crore achievers, no wonder Mumbai is economical and commercial capital of the country.

Voting lines are open. People can vote and help me decide why Mumbai is FAST !

Links: BBC, BBC