Increase in bus fare looks imminent

10% increase likely, minimum fare to go up by ₹1

A hike in the bus fare for all class of stage carriers of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and that of private operators is on the cards, taking into account the mounting cost of high-speed diesel and operating costs.

The bus fare was hiked last in the State in May 2014. As per the proposal, the minimum fare is to go up by ₹1, to touch ₹8.

As the move by the government is to increase charges on an average by 10% on all classes of stage carriers, the per kilometre rate for the stage carriers will also go up.

A high-level committee comprising the Ministers for Finance and Transport, that is overseeing the revival plans of the KSRTC on a weekly basis, has already asked the Transport Secretary to prepare “notes with justification for increasing the fare and the rate per kilometre to be placed in the Cabinet” indicating the hike.

Panel task

The Kerala State Fare Revision Committee headed by former High Court Judge Ramachandran, tasked by the government to look into the fare revision, had already heard the opinions of commuters and bus operators on the issue, sources in the Transport Department told

The Hindu .

The committee set up on the demand of the private bus operators has also completed the public hearing.

With this, the stage is set for the increase in bus fare in the State after getting Cabinet nod for the proposal to be submitted by the Ramachandran committee.

Citing the increase in the per-km operating cost, steep hike in insurance premium of the stage carriers, cost of chassis and expenditure going up by 30%, the private operators are demanding an increase in the minimum fare from the present ₹7 to ₹10 and an increase in the per km rate.

The loss-making KSRTC that is facing a huge revenue-deficit gap is also looking for a hike in the bus fare at the earliest as it will fetch additional revenue from the fleet.