On the back of the large turnout for ‘Kaanum Pongal,' the Metropolitan Transport Corporation and the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) registered record ticket sales and revenue collection on Monday.
The MTC raked in more than Rs.2.27 crore, which was nearly Rs.40 lakh more than the average revenue generated on a weekday. It was also about Rs.27 lakh more than the revenue that the transport corporation earned during ‘Kaanum Pongal' last year.
It operated 3,240 buses, including 200 special buses, on Monday. The special buses were operated to the Marina beach, Mahabalipuram, Island Grounds, where a trade fair is on, and the Vandalur zoo.
T. Ravikumar of the All India Train and Bus Passengers Welfare Association said that the MTC's Rs.30 ‘travel-as-you-please' tickets were especially useful for those who were sightseeing along with their family.
The MTC sold more than 1.05 lakh ‘travel-as-you please' tickets, which is more than double the average weekday sale of 40,000 tickets.
Mr. Ravikumar, however, complained that a large number of buses were operated as deluxe buses, instead of being run as ordinary service.
A senior MTC official responded by saying that since much of the fleet augmentation was on routes that stretched to localities that were far away from the city, such as Mahabalipuram, it was standard procedure to run them as Express services.
The MRTS on Monday carried the highest number of passengers ever on a single day. More than 1.2 lakh passengers boarded the trains on the MRTS line, many of them heading to the beach. The earnings amounted to Rs.5.2 lakh, which is double the usual on a weekday.
