Automatic mechanism to fix bus fare

The Odisha government today decided to implement an automatic mechanism to fix the bus fare with rise and fall of fuel price besides effecting a hike in bus fares by four to eight paise per km with immediate effect.

While the government announced to hike the fare for ordinary buses by four paise per kilometer (from 57 paisa to 61 paisa per km), express buses fare increased also by four paise (from 60 paisa to 64 paisa). The fare for delux buses is raised by six paise from 80 paisa to 86 paisa and AC deluxe buses from 99 paisa to Rs 1.07 per km.

Commerce and Transport minister Ramesh Majhi also announced the implementation of the automatic mechanism, a long-standing demand of bus owners.

"For every Rs 2 increase (on direct/ cumulative or both net basis) in diesel price, the bus fare is to be raised by one paise per kilometer for ordinary and express buses and 2 paise per kilometer for delux and AC delux buses and there will not be any increase in the bus fare in the event of increase of disel price less than Rs 2 or Rs 2 in full, there will be decrease in bus fare by one paise per kilometer for ordinary and express buses and two paise per kilometer for delux and AC delux buses," a notification issued by the commerce and trasnport department said.

The Transport Commissioner is authorised to issue necessary order on automatic revision within two working days from the date of increase or decrease in disel price, the notification said adding that the base price may be taken at the present rate of disel which is Rs 57.61 per litre, it said.

The bus fare for town buses will be at par with the fare of the BPTSL buses fixed by the housing and urban development department subject to condition that the private town bus operators will extend similar facility in their buses as it extended by the BPTSL (Bhubaneswar Puri Transport Service Limited).