The extended weekend saw a big rush of travellers at the Central Bus Stand on Monday night.
With the Republic Day falling on a Monday, a large number of passengers from Chennai had arrived in Tiruchi and southern districts to spend the weekend.
A good number of young employees of IT industry were waiting for more than three hours at the bus stand.
It has become a usual phenomenon to see a large crowd of passengers bound for Chennai during such occasions. A number of van operators quickly tried to cash in on the situation, offering to take passengers to Chennai for Rs. 400 a head.
Rs. 600 a ticket
Nearly, a dozen vans were seen parked at the entrance of the bus stand. Omni bus operators said that such fly-by-night van operators posed a stiff competition to them.
“It is only during the Deepavali or Pongal season that we could make hay by collecting Rs. 600 a ticket. But the presence of vans with Rs. 400 a ticket posed a serious challenge to us,” said one of the omni bus operators. Most vans operate without any authorisation to run such services.
“Van drivers attempt to exploit the situation and it is recent phenomenon at the central bus stand in the city. The Regional Transport Officer should take action against them,” he said.
But some van drivers maintained that they had the valid permits. The rush lasted till late in the night.
The Taml Nadu State Transport Corporation operated special services. There was a scramble for the deluxe buses operated by the corporation and police had to intervene to regulate the crowd.
Passengers were offered a ride to Chennai for Rs. 400 in vans
Bus operators charged as much as Rs. 600 per head
