Punjab govt hikes bus fare, second time this year

Gagan K. Teja
Tribune News Service
Patiala, June 1

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Get ready to pay more for bus travel as the Punjab government on Friday hiked fares of ordinary and air-conditioned buses by 6 paise.

The government has increased the fair after a gap of three-and-a-half months and now the travelling cost is 110 paise per km.

The fair was previously hiked in February, 2017, by 3 paise per km i.e. 102 paise to 104 per km.

From June 1, the government increased the fare for different categories of the buses. Now, the fare of ordinary buses will be 110 paise per kilometer per person.

With this hike, a passenger travelling by ordinary HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) buses will be charged 132 paise per km since their fare is 20 per cent in excess of the ordinary buses.

Those travelling by integral coaches will pay 198 paise per km and super integral coach charges will be 220 paise per km as its fare is double the fare of the ordinary buses.

This move of increasing bus fares might irk some passengers but will certainly bring some respite to the Pepsu Road Transport Corporation (PRTC), which is reeling under severe financial crisis. This increase will help in increasing their daily revenue by Rs 6 lakh, which comes out to be Rs 1.80 crore lakh per month and Rs 21.60 crore annually.

PRTC managing director Manjit Singh Narang said they had sent the proposal about 10 days back since the increasing prices of diesel had become a cause of concern for them. In last one month, the price of diesel had gone up by Rs 3.50 per litre and it had become practically impossible to meet the expenses. Moreover, there is a sudden dip in daily revenue due to harsh summers which has increased our problems further. PRTCs daily receipt had come down from Rs 1.32 crore to Rs 1.25 crore and this fare hike was a must in order to strike a balance between our income and expenditure.

However, this has certainly not gone down well with the commuters who feel that the state government rather than trying to control the increasing prices of oil are putting the burden on the travellers.

Amanpreet Singh, a banker, said, “Most of the people who, travel through buses, are either are from economically weaker sections or middle class families. This hike will definitely increase their burden. The state government should find ways to make the public transport more economical.”