[TusharK]

Hotels and lodges in the state of Tamil Nadu have been mandated to provide amenities such as dormitories, toilets and bathrooms for the drivers of its guests.



According to a notification issued by the Housing and Urban Development Department, under the Tamil Nadu Town and Country Planning Act, 1971, and the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Act, 1998, one bed space in the dormitory must be provided for each car parking space required for the guest rooms.

The state has also directed all hotels to provide a dormitory within the premises or within a 250-meter radius of the premises. For every 8 beds, a separate toilet and a separate bathroom must be provided attached to the dormitory.

Source: The Hindu

Thanks to Shekar for sharing this information with other enthusiasts!

Link to Team-BHP News

[airguitar]

Originally Posted by TusharK

Hotels and lodges in the state of Tamil Nadu have been mandated to provide amenities such as dormitories, toilets and bathrooms for the drivers of its guests.

Welcome announcement. Many of the "tourist" circuits in other parts of the country have such accommodation ( e.g, the yatra circuit of Uttarakhand ) but it is not mandated. Many times, I have had to fight for driver accommodation at the hotels and it used to become an unpleasant situation.

[shyampsunder]

Example of a policy that comes with good intentions at heart like most policies but is poorly thought out and over time will simply be a tool for the bureaucracy to harass hotels.

Some examples:

1. It's typically the rich who have cars with drivers and they are not going to be staying in budget hotels. But this GO doesn't specify any hotel type which means costs are disproportionately higher for budget hotels while they have no need for such dorms.

2. GO specifies one bed per car parking spot. With more and more people driving themselves, how does it make any sense to have as many beds as car parking slots reserved for drivers? As India develops labor will only get more expensive and only a tiny fraction of people will take their drivers on long vacations. If this results in hotels reducing the number of parking spots, especially the budget ones, and encouraging parking on the roads, it will worsen our existing road congestion problems and become an unintended consequence of this regulation.

3. Today it's impossible to sleep in the car overnight because running the engine is both dangerous and super expensive. As EVs become mainstream, all the hotel needs to do is provide a 15A plug and the driver can sleep in the car in the comfort of AC. Many EV owners do this already with Tesla even introducing features like Camp mode for owners to sleep in the car. Without an expiry date on this regulation, it will fail to adapt to changing technologies.

One common thing I have noticed in almost all govt regulations is that the costs of adhering to such regulations are never thought about and the assumption is that all entities are running on unlimited profits. It's a hangover from our socialist past and somehow we are unable to let go of it.

[PreludeSH]

So the hotels will ask the guests while booking if they are bringing a driver ? This is something that hotels themselves should do instead of the govt commanding them and introducing bureaucratic meddling in everything. Is there a cost that needs to be borne by the guest for the dormitory ?

I once stayed in a hotel in Pondicherry where the hotel did not give bathing facilities and we asked the driver to use our room one during checkout. The driver said he is going to put a bad review of the hotel

[ohaak]

Hotels are mandated to furnish this facility in the surrounding area, so it need not necessarily be located within the property. Hotels are discouraged from promoting street parking as it forms part of the services offered by them. While some hotels may opt for this, they risk losing patrons to those establishments that provide on-site parking. It's unquestionably more comfortable to sleep in a bed than in a car.

The enforcement of the Government Order (GO) might be subject to debate, but it offers the consumer a governmental decree to rely on in case of conflict. However, it is understandable that this directive could pose an inconvenience for hotel proprietors.

[anandhsub]

Why cant the guests be mandated to book a room for their driver?

[ABHI_1512]

Wonderful initiative which is more likely directed towards the commercial segment than the personal one. There are anyways a miniscule number of people who take their drivers on their driving holidays. I remember during my first Kerala trip, I have seen commercial drivers sleeping inside their cars with the heater on in the chilly climate of Munnar. They were allowed to use the washroom facilities though. This segment will most benefit from this move.

Having said that, I have also seen commercial drivers not making use of the dormitory facilities despite those being available to them. May be it is done to save some bucks or may be the commercial tour operators in order to cut the expenses force their drivers to do so. Either way, the directive will be of no use if the intended audience don't use the facilities provided !!

[anjan_c2007]

Though a welcome step it appears that there is a sudden concern by politicians about the well being of drivers. Not sure if there are election undertones associated. Firstly the soon to be compulsory AC driver cabins in trucks announced by Sh Gadkari now the rest rooms/ dormitories for them announced by Sh Stalin.

There are problems galore when official cars and jeeps with drivers are taken long distance.There has been a case to my knowledge where the driver was told to make his arrangements during night halt while undertaking a long journey. He slept in some forlorn place within the hotel where his boss was halting and suffered lots of mosquito bites. Due to disturbed sleep pattern the driver could not concentrate on his driving the next day.

A driver suffering from sleep hypnosis risks the safety of all occupants of the vehicle.

[kovilkalai]

Does the GO specify whether the cost of the dormitory is spread across all the rooms whether or not they have a driver or it is only charged to those who make use of this facility? If you have not specified this detail, then the GO is incomplete.

To take a step back, why is the government regulating stuff like this? Providing rooms to drivers free of charge isn't a hotel's responsibility. I am sure that the hotel will be glad to provide a room to the driver if the guest is willing to pay for it.

I hope that hotels don't get rid of parking facilities as an unintended consequence of this rule.

[ghodlur]

While this a welcome move and will give the much needed relief to the drivers who otherwise are forced to make their own arrangements of food and rest. Its a pity to see may drivers resting in the car when they actually need some space to stretch their legs.

On the other hand, the hotels could start adding the driver expenses to the room cost which could make the rooms not affordable.

[Hayek]

Classic example of nutty over regulation which turns ordinary citizens into violators of the law. Why should hotels provide rooms for drivers of their guests? If the guest wants, he should book a room for the driver. Why should the cost be incurred by the hotel?

The other details are even more nutty. Why should there be a driver dormitory for every car? Has anyone conducted a survey of what percentage of parked cars are chauffeur driven? And why within 250 metres of the premises. Can’t a driver walk 1 Km or take public transport to a dorm further away?

Seems to me that some insufferable bureaucrat found that there was no accommodation for his driver and he came up with these rules. Insane!

[sagarpadaki]

On a recent trip to Kukke in a taxi, the hotel where we stayed had a dormitory facility for driver on a chargeable basis of Rs.300 per night. Our driver refused to use it and said he prefers to sleep in the car since he is used to it. So, the willingness of the drivers to use the dormitory is also important.

[lina]

This unfairly penalises people who drive on their own. The rule should have stopped at "Drivers should be given accommodation at the expense of the guest who brings the driver".

[Raghu M]

Can't say this is a welcome decision fully. This will spike the accommodation costs a little. But it's good for the drivers. When I was in Ooty two months ago, my driver did not take bath the first day. I asked him and he told, there is no proper facility. The property was a huge one with a lawn, garden and other facilities for guests. I spoke to the owner personally and she accommodated the request. After all, drivers also suffer from fatigue and need some basic bedding and washroom facilities. A well rested driver is definitely an asset on the highways.

[raptor_diwan]

Definitely, hotel owners are likely to come up with excuses or find ways to avoid providing a special place for drivers. It seems highly unlikely that they will willingly allocate space for drivers, especially considering the potential increase in demand if it's a popular tourist destination like Ooty or Kodaikanal. Requiring an additional person to stay in each room would result in a loss for the hotel, considering the extra water usage, cleaning, and other factors involved.

Moreover, most existing hotels do not currently offer such a facility, so it remains unclear how this implementation would take place. If they do decide to address the issue, they might simply add another column to their booking system and reject offers where the driver is included. Consequently, it will become increasingly challenging to find hotel rooms that accommodate drivers.