Diesel-run or not, all public buses charging extra fare

After observing a nationwide strike taking people hostage to press home their demand to raise bus fares in the wake of the latest spell of diesel price hike, bus service operators are now charging passengers extra at will, bypassing the government-fixed rates.

Gas-operated public transports too have hiked fares, violating the government directive to only increase fares of diesel-run vehicles.

The minimum bus fare has been increased from Tk7 to Tk10 in cities. For minibuses, the minimum fare has been raised from Tk5 to Tk8.

The government – following a meeting between the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) and transport owners on Sunday – increased the fares for intra-city and long-haul buses by 26.5% and 27%, respectively. It said the new fares are not applicable for CNG-run vehicles.

But, commuters alleged, no buses were charging less than Tk15 on Monday while most of them were charging extra fares ranging from 30% to 50%. Some companies even reportedly hiked the fare by as high as 100%.

While visiting different parts of the capital on Monday, reporters of The Business Standard found several bus companies to have illegally increased their fares by at least 50%.

Passengers in Karwan Bazar, Banglamotor, Shahbagh, Paltan, Motijheel and Gulistan areas claimed that all the buses, whether diesel-run or not, were charging extra money.

Himaloy Paribahan minibuses, which run on gas, were charging Tk15 from passengers going from Jatrabari to Motijheel.

The fare was Tk10 a couple of days back.

A passenger, Kismot Ali, of Himaloy Paribahan said, "Before the bus strike, I used to pay Tk5 from Jatrabari to Motijheel. Sometimes, I paid Tk10. But today, the bus workers have forced me to pay Tk15. This amount is so high for this short distance. Our suffering does not end."

Mizanur Rahman, one of the helpers working for the company, said, "We are charging the passengers extra money just like everybody else.

"However, I don't know if fares for gas-powered vehicles have gone up or not."

To make matters worse, commuters are finding it difficult to distinguish between CNG and fossil fuel-operated buses.

Moreover, bus supervisors misbehaved when passengers protested the illegal fare hike of gas-run vehicles.

Kamal Gazi took the No. 8 bus (Gabtoli Express Company Limited) to reach Banglamotor from Gabtoli.

"Usually, I pay Tk20 for this distance. But today, I had to spend Tk25 despite my bus being a CNG-operated vehicle," he said.

Rafiq, a supervisor of intra-city bus service Bikalapa Auto Services, said passengers were paying more as the government had increased the fares.

Asked why the company was charging 30% to 50% more than the government fixed rate, he blamed it on the authorities. "Our Company has fixed the new fares and we are charging the passengers accordingly. There is no scope for us, the employees, to make extra money."

"We now have to pay Tk15 for travelling a distance of mere 2km. It is us, the general people, who always suffer the most," said Pabitra Das, a passenger of Bikalapa Auto Services said, expressing anger and frustration.

Sabbir Hossain who was going from Mirpur-12 to Gulshan-1 by a bus of Rob Rob Paribahan got into an argument with the bus conductor for charging extra fare on the transport.

Sabbir told TBS that the conductor wanted more money than that fixed by the government. "The conductor can't say how much the rent has increased but he wants extra fare. Earlier, the fare from Mirpur to Gulshan was Tk25. As a result of the increase in fare, it should be Tk30 but the conductor is charging Tk35."

Another passenger of the same bus, who went to Mohakhali, also got involved in an argument as the conductor demanded extra fare.

He said buses are taking many times more than the fare that BRTA has increased. "The price of fuel oil has gone up by Tk15 a litre. Is this the reason for taking the extra money from passengers? Will only the ordinary people pay all the fees?"

CMP to use special colours for CNG-run vehicles

Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP) is going to instruct the transport owners association to mark CNG-run vehicles with special colours to prevent overcharging passengers in public transports.

CMP Additional Commissioner (traffic) Shyamal Kumar Nath told The Business Standard on Monday night, "We will instruct the transport owners association to mark the CNG-run vehicles with special colour to make it easier to identify those."

CNG-run human haulers to join the band

Lagunas, or human haulers, also have increased fares although they run on gas.

Lagunas that are operated from Indira Road in Farmgate to Mohammadpur and Jigatala used to charge a Mohammadpur-bound passenger Tk10 earlier, but the fare has been raised by 50% to Tk15.

Asked, laguna driver Aminur came up with a rather strange explanation. "We have increased the fare as we take 10 passengers now instead of 12 earlier."

Extra fare in public transport in Khulna

There have been allegations of charging extra fares from public transports passengers in Khulna, which led to altercations between passengers and transport workers centring the latest hike in public transport fares.

Passengers said fares on various routes have been increased from Tk20 to Tk100. However, Nurul Haque Lipon, president of the Rupsha-Bagerhat Bus Minibus Microbus Association, said they were charging less than the fare fixed by the government.

Rafiqul Islam, Khulna district president of the Passengers Welfare Association, said it would have been better for the passengers if the fare had been rescheduled through a public hearing or coordination with passenger representatives.

Minister's call to transport operators

Meanwhile, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has called upon transport owners and workers to make sure passengers are not charged more than the stipulated fare.

The government would be forced to take strict action against public transport operators if they break their promise in this regard, he warned while briefing the media at his official residence on Monday morning.

Obaidul Quader said the increased fare would not be applicable for vehicles run by fuel other than diesel.