The mayor and municipal commissioner gave the nod to increase the bus fare by ₹5 and extend the route of city buses to 5km beyond the city limits on Friday.
The decision was taken during an all-party meeting held at the mayor’s office near the Rose Garden. Leader of opposition SAD councillor Jaspal Giaspura, BJP councillor Sunita Rani, and LIP councillor Swarandeep Chahal were among those who attended the meeting. The resolution will be tabled before the Ludhiana City Bus Service Limited board of directors for final approval.
At present, the contractor charges ₹5 for the first 5km, ₹10 for 10km, ₹15 for 15km and an additional 75 paisa per kilometre beyond it. The rates have been increased by ₹5 under all the categories.
The fare has been increased on the condition that the contractor will run all the 83 buses handed over to him, service will be provided on more city routes, and he will withdraw the case filed against the MC seeking fare revision.
Service to extend to 7 routes
{{/usCountry}}Service to extend to 7 routes
{{/usCountry}}Around 12 buses are operational on two city routes at present. It has been proposed that the service will be extended to at least seven more routes after the fare is increased.
In the wake of the rising diesel prices, the contractor had warned the MC that he would surrender the contract, if the fare was not increased. The contractor had said that diesel was being sold at ₹48 per litre when the contract was signed in 2015, but diesel rates have almost doubled, due to which it was difficult to run the buses without increasing the fare.
The city bus service, which provided the only public transport facility in the district, has been in deep waters for a long time. Of the 120 buses purchased under the project, 83 have been handed over to the contractor, but only 12 are being plied, while others gather dust at depot. The remaining 37 buses in the civic body’s possession are also not in use.
Mayor Balkar Sandhu said nod was given to increase the fare due to the increase in prices of fuel, and after considering the Chandigarh model.
Officials have been directed to finalise more routes where the service will be resumed in the coming days.
Political implications
An MC official, requesting anonymity, said that the Congress party also has vested interest in resolving the issue as the assembly polls are in the offing, and the city bus service is usually a hot-button issue.
The Opposition, too, has been taking digs at the Congress party, saying that its leaders had been protesting to improve the city bus service during the SAD-BJP regime in the state, but had themselves failed on the front.
In a nutshell
Mayor Balkar Sandhu said nod was given to increase the fare due to the increase in prices of fuel, and after considering the Chandigarh model.
Distance Present fare Hiked fare
5km ₹5 ₹10
10km ₹10 ₹15
15km ₹15 ₹20