E-Paper
UPSRTC to introduce fare reduction for luxury buses between Delhi and Lucknow
Ghaziabad
Ghaziabad
In order to compete with private bus operators and other modes of transports, the UP State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) has decided to introduce ‘telescopic fare’ for its luxury Volvo and Scania buses that operate between Delhi and Lucknow via the Yamuna Expressway.
The officials said that the Ghaziabad region operates such buses to Lucknow from Anand Vihar ISBT.
According to officials, for the first 100km, the fare will remain unchanged under the plan. For the remaining distance, the fares will be slashed by 1.5% (of existing ticket price) for every 50 kilometres travelled (maximum total reduction of upto 15%).
According to estimates, a passengers travelling in a Volvo or a Scania bus will be able to get a reduction of about Rs 125 if the journey is up to Lucknow for a distance of 500 kilometres. According to the new slab, a 600km journey will have a reduction of about Rs 189 in the ticket fare.
“Apart from the slab, which will first be introduced on a pilot basis between Delhi and Lucknow, the regular discount on advance bookings will also be available for passengers. So the fare to Lucknow on the pilot route will be further reduced if a passenger makes advance booking. The UPSRTC has sought our opinion on scrapping the advance booking discount during the peak travel time, like festivals,” said AK Singh, regional manager of the Ghaziabad UPSRTC region.
“At present the pilot project will be launched from January 1, 2020. If it turns out to be successful, it will be implemented for all other routes — like Dehdradun, Rishikesh, Bareilly, Gorakhpur and Varanasi. The new fare system has been introduced in order to compete with other modes like Railways and the private operators who charge less. But quality of our services and travel time to reach destination is much better,” Singh added.
The UPSRTC operates about 120 Volvo and Scania buses in the state, of which 50 of these are operated from the Ghaziabad region while 10 are operated from Anand Vihar to Lucknow via Yamuna Expressway.
According to officials, the buses are 41-49 seaters and have a load factor (ridership) of about 20-22 passengers per trip, which can increase if the pilot project gets a positive response from passengers.
The passengers opting to travel through Volvo and Scania buses are also offered advance booking discount of 5% on fare, if they book ticket 5-10 days before the journey date; 10% in case they booked 11-20 days before and 15% in cases when the advance booking is made between 21-30 days before the journey date.
