Commuters forced to pay three times the cost for holiday travel

Private buses are fleecing commuters by increasing the fares during weekends even as the transport department sits on a proposal to fix maximum fares for such operators.

Fares of private buses to some destinations skyrocketed in the days preceding the Independence Day. The extended weekend meant there were many who wanted to leave Bengaluru for various destinations inside and outside Karnataka. “Though KSRTC plies additional buses on such occasions, you can’t escape paying double or triple the normal fare in private buses unless you booked a seat early,” said Ganesh Narona, adding he paid Rs 3,200 for an AC sleeper bus seat to Belagavi, a substantial increase compared to the regular fare of Rs 1,500.

Rishi B Krishnan said he had to pay Rs 1,500 to travel to Chennai by a private bus, which was triple the regular amount of Rs 500.

The Regional Transport Office (RTO) has sent a proposal to the government seeking to rein in the fares of private buses. “We have proposed to limit the fare for private buses, beginning from Rs 35 per km in case of ordinary buses to Rs 45 for air-conditioned vehicles,” an official in the Transport department said. The official said fares for contract carriage buses, which operate long distances, were fixed by considering the minimum number of passengers.

“The fare structure has been arrived at considering minimum and average passengers that buses ferry. For some buses, fares have been proposed considering 35 as the average number of passengers. The number varies for buses as per their capacity, quality of service and demand,” he said.

Sources said though the proposal was sent to in June, the government was yet to take a decision.  “It is an extensive study and takes into consideration various factors like demand, balancing the interests of commuters with those of private bus operators,” they said.

However, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy said he was yet to receive the proposal. “The file must be pending with the secretariat. I will clear the file within a day once I receive it,” he said.