Following Friday's hike in the price of diesel, the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) and the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) have announced a fare revision.
Regular bus commuters will have to dig deeper into their pockets as ticket fares and daily pass rates have been hiked by the BMTC with effect from Saturday midnight. The fare revision is the result of the hike in the diesel price, which went up by Rs. 3.72 a litre, as well as because the transport corporation recently released two instalments of dearness allowance to its employees.
According to a BMTC press release, the fares for the first, sixth and eighth stages are going to remain the same while those for the second, third, fourth, fifth and seventh stages will be up by Re. 1. For the ninth and 25th stages, the fares have been increased by Rs. 2. The hike in fares will be applicable to all bus services, including Big-10, Pushpak, Suvarna and Janapriya Vahini.
Daily passes
There is a considerable increase in the rates of daily passes as well. The ordinary daily pass with identity card will now cost Rs. 5 more at Rs. 40. Daily passes without the identity card will cost Rs. 45 (existing fare is Rs. 40). The rate of Vajra Gold daily pass is also up by Rs. 5, from Rs. 85 to Rs. 90.
In a press release, the KSRTC said the financial burden on it due to the fuel price hike would be Rs. 78.84 crore a year. The overall increase approved by the Government is 6.95 per cent, while the hike in fares of ordinary services has been limited to 5.12 per cent to “reduce impact on rural passengers.”
To follow suit
Northwest Karnataka Road Transport Corporation and Northeast Road Transport Corporation will also be revising the fares by a similar percentage.
Owing to the revision, travel by Express service from Bangalore to Mysore will now cost Rs. 101 (existing fare is Rs. 95), to Mangalore Rs. 253 (Rs. 237), to Gulbarga Rs. 441 (Rs. 412), and to Hubli Rs. 291 (Rs. 273).
The fare in Rajahamsa service from Bangalore to Mysore will be Rs. 153 up from the existing Rs. 143, to Mangalore Rs. 385 (existing fare Rs. 357), to Gulbarga Rs. 676 (Rs. 628) and to Hubli Rs. 444 (Rs. 413).
