Bombay's local commuter trains are easily the most crowded in the world, and the source of oft-quoted statistics in the local papers: 4700 passengers per nine cars during rush hour, or 1.4 people per square foot according to the state transportation authority. An average of ten people die daily on the train system. Many are slum dwellers living near the tracks who are run over by the trains, but the electrical poles, about two feet from the cars, kill plenty of guys hanging out the doors. There is one particular pole that is unusually close to the train and on the outside of a curve that is said to take ten lives per month. Young men often ride on top of the trains as well, which is much more pleasant than riding inside until one falls off or is hit by an electrical wire.

I rode the trains everywhere around Bombay during the three weeks I was there. The crowded conditions require some strategy during rush hour. It is often impossible to move very far inside the train, so getting off requires inching ever closer to the door during the jostling at each of several stops preceding yours, and if properly positioned you will simply be carried off the train by the crush of bodies at the correct stop. Getting on, you have a choice of fighting to get inside the train as people elbow their way on and off, or trying to grab on to the outside of the train and hang out the door. As crowded as the trains are, fellow riders will often hold out a helping hand to grab as the train pulls away.