The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Reduction in fares takes bus commuters by surprise

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 01, 2009
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Reduction in fares takes bus commuters by surprise

Staff Reporter

— PHOTO: S. Thanthoni

SUDDEN CHANGE: Many bus services that were earlier operated as ‘M’ services and charged a minimum fare of Rs.3 changed as ordinary services on Thursday.

CHENNAI: Regular passengers of Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses were taken by surprise on Thursday as Deluxe, Express, LSS and Point-to-Point services only levied ‘ordinary’ fares. Most low-floor buses of MTC and other luxury services, which earlier levied a minimum fare ranging from Rs.3 to Rs.5, charged Rs.2 only.

Passengers said many ‘M’ bus services, whose fare start at Rs.3, did not sport ‘M’ next to the bus number, which turned them into ordinary services. Even yellow board buses charged a minimum fare of Rs.2 instead of Rs.2.50.

Passengers in the deluxe bus service on 23C route said that they were charged only Rs.2 for travelling from Egmore railway station stop to Shanti bus stop whereas for the same distance they were earlier charged Rs.7. “I kept looking at the conductor in disbelief,” said R.Revathi, a commuter.

At Ayanavaram, the conductor of a bus on route 23V was seen standing on the footboard and inviting passengers waiting at the stop saying that they did not have to pay more to travel in a Deluxe service.

T.Sadagopan, a resident of Pattabiram, boarded a Deluxe B70 bus with his wife in the morning and gave the conductor a 20-rupee note for two tickets to Guindy, as it would have cost Rs.18 usually. “But the conductor returned Rs.8 and issued two six-rupee tickets,” he said. “First I thought the conductor had got me wrong and I repeated I had to go to Guindy. He smiled and said from today onwards fares had been slashed,” he said.

Sources in MTC confirmed that the transport corporation had decided to levy ordinary fares in premium bus services from Thursday. However, fares of the air-conditioned buses of MTC remained the same, they added.

On whether the decision to slash the fares was a policy decision, they replied in the negative. “It is the decision of MTC,” an official said. He said that they had not received “any written orders and were acting upon oral instructions from higher-ups”.

Social activist ‘Traffic’ Ramasamy, who is also contesting the election as an Independent candidate from the Chennai South constituency, said the government had taken this decision with an eye on the polls. He said he had submitted complaint letters to the Chief Electoral Officer, Transport Secretary and Chief Election Commissioner on Thursday morning stating that it was a violation of the model code of conduct.

T. Ravikumar of the All India Rail and Bus Passengers Association said the demand to reduce fares for Deluxe and Express bus services had been around for long. “I wonder why the government did not respond to the demand all these days. The question now is whether this fare will be maintained or not,” he said.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu