Buses in Ctg overcharge passengers even without rush during Eid

There was no rush of passengers at the bus counters in Chattogram ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha, but still the buses operating inside the division have increased fares by Tk100 to Tk150, according to the transport workers and passengers.

Along with a number of buses, cars, microbuses, and other vehicles have also increased their rents ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha. However, the long-distance buses running from Chattogram to other divisions across the country have not hiked fares, said sources.

The Chattogram Railway Station was more crowded on Tuesday compared to the bus stations in the port city, and trains left Chattogram as per schedule, said sources.

Our correspondent on Tuesday found that there was no pressure of home-bound passengers at the bus counters in Kodomtoli, BRTC, Madarbari, and Garibullah Shah areas of Chattogram city. Despite that, bus companies – such as Badhon and Shwadhin Bangla Paribahan running on the Chattogram-Noakhali route – hiked fares.

Badhon Paribahan charged passengers Tk400 instead of the regular fare of Tk300, while Shwadhin Bangla hiked the fare from Tk480 to Tk600.

Imran Hossain, a passenger of Badhon Paribahan, said "Hiking bus fares ahead of Eid has become an unwritten rule and this year was no exception. Badhon Paribahan has increased the fare by Tk100, although there was no crowd."

Md Sagar, a worker of Badhon Paribahan, said around 50 buses leave from Kadmatoli every day. The number of buses have not increased much during this Eid season.

Kamal Uddin, counter manager of Shwadhin Bangla Paribahan, said, "We have been getting 40% less home-bound passengers ahead of Eid-ul-Azha this year compared to other years. We have around 20 vehicles operating every day, and the number of vehicles has not increased ahead of Eid-ul-Azha."

Nazim Uddin, employee of a private company, told TBS, "All types of vehicles have increased their fares on the occasion of Eid. On Tuesday morning, I rented a microbus for Tk3,500 to go from Chattogram city to Nizampur area of Mirsarai with my family, but in normal times it would cost around Tk2,500."

The managers of bus counters in Garibullah Shah, and BRTC areas in the port city, said they were charging the same fare of Tk680 for the buses on the Chattogram-Dhaka route. Besides, bus fare for other routes has also remained the same.

Manjurul Alam Manju, secretary general of Road Transport Owners Association, said the pressure of passengers is low during this Eid.

He also claimed that over 400 public transports ply on the routes from Chattogram to Rangamati and Khagrachhari, and they were charging the usual fare.

Eid rush at Ctg train station

There was a rush of passengers at Chattogram Railway Station counters to get tickets for various trains including the Meghna Express and two special trains going from Chattogram to Chandpur.

Special measures have been taken to prevent passengers from climbing on the roof of the trains, said sources at the railway station.

Habibur Rahman, a passenger of Meghna Express said, "I am going home to celebrate Eid with my family. I had to wait in a long queue to buy the ticket."

Chattogram Railway Station Manager Ratan Kumar Chowdhury on Tuesday told TBS that all the locomotives including the special trains left the Chattogram station as per schedule.

All the necessary measures have been taken to ensure that the passengers do not suffer any kind of harassment during the Eid journey, he added.