Ahmedabad: The city’s big-buck mobility power is demonstrated by the fact that in 2025-26 Amdavadis bought vehicles worth Rs 7,538 crore, which vrooms past the Rs 4,314 crore budget of the state’s ports and transport department for the current financial year. The estimate of the money spent on vehicles has been derived from municipal vehicle tax collections.Corporation officials said that Amdavadis spent Rs 6,813 crore on vehicles in 2024-25. In the financial year 2025-26, the AMC collected Rs 239.3 crore in vehicle tax from 2.98 lakh vehicles registered with the Subhash Bridge and Vastral RTOs. The AMC levies a vehicle tax ranging from 2% to 5%. Two-wheelers, autorickshaws, loading rickshaws, four-wheeler loading tempos and mini trucks attract a vehicle tax of 2.5% of the basic price. For cars, the vehicle tax ranges from 2% to 5% depending on cost.Cars priced above Rs 50 lakh attract 5% vehicle tax, and those priced between Rs 25 lakh and Rs 49.9 lakh are subject to 4% tax.The officials said that the tax collection from vehicles this year was around Rs 15 crore higher than in the previous year, when Rs 224.8 crore was collected for 2.6 lakh vehicles. The figures indicate both a rise in the number of vehicles being registered and an increase in the value of vehicles being purchased in the city.RTO officials said most cars registered in Ahmedabad fall in the 2.7% to 4% vehicle tax bracket, indicating that the vehicles’ basic prices are above Rs 8 lakh and up to Rs 49.9 lakh. This suggests that the demand remains strong in the mid-range and premium passenger vehicle segments.Officials also pointed to a growing appetite for luxury vehicles. In 2025-26, around 4,631 luxury cars were registered in the city, about 7% higher than the 4,333 recorded in 2024-25.According to officials, higher ground clearance, stronger road presence, feature-rich models, and easy loan availability have contributed to the rise in sales of premium vehicles.At the same time, tax officials said a substantial number of vehicle owners continue to avoid registering vehicles within Ahmedabad to dodge corporation tax. The official data does not include vehicles registered under the GJ-38 series, which covers Bavla, because those vehicles do not pay the AMC vehicle tax.In 2025-26, about 55,000 vehicles were registered in Bavla.Officials said many of these vehicles are used by Ahmedabad residents but are registered at addresses in nearby villages. “For a Rs 35 lakh vehicle, one must pay Rs 1.4 lakh to the corporation, and this amount is equivalent to the insurance amount,” an RTO officer said. “Hence, some people register vehicles in Bavla.”Officials said that the number of vehicles bought by Amdavadis may be even higher than the tax-based estimate suggests as the estimate only factors in the base value.Among other levies, buyers have to pay the RTO tax and vehicle tax and buy insurance. The total additional expenditure works out to be nearly Rs 5 lakh for a Rs 35 lakh vehicle.As for electric vehicles, they remain outside the vehicle tax net, as Ahmedabad collects zero vehicle tax on EVs. The exemption has been extended for 2026-27.
