Passengers planning to travel by omni bus need not worry about fares this festive season. The transport department has set up booths at three locations in the city to prevent any omni bus operator from collecting exorbitant fares from passengers.
This is the first time the department has initiated such a move for the benefit of the public. According to transport department sources, booths have been setup near the Egmore railway station, Perungalathur and at the omni bus terminal in Koyambedu.
Transport officials will check for collection of excess fares by operators, whether the vehicles’ taxes have been paid and whether insurance and other vehicle documents are in order.
The counters started functioning from Tuesday and will continue to function until November 4, between 8 p.m. and midnight.
The Koyambedu booth is manned by two regional transport officers (RTO) and eight motor vehicle inspectors.
In Egmore and Perungalathur, there are four inspectors and one RTO in the booth.
Two complaints were received by the officials on Tuesday, pertaining to excess fare collection. The booths functioned until 11 p.m. but transport department sources said there was not much of a crowd then.
On Wednesday, crowds began thronging the mofussil bus terminus, but fare collection seemed to be in order. “On the second day (Wednesday), we did not receive any complaints about excess fares,” said an official.
“In case of violations by omni bus operators, the department will cancel the permit of the concerned operator and take stringent action,” the official added.
