Bus fares hiked in Punjab

Travelling by buses will cost more in Punjab now as the transport department has decided to raise the fares by 5 per cent with effect from today.
With this, the bus fares in Punjab now stand at 83 paise per km for ordinary buses, 99 paise per km for AC buses, and Rs 1.49 and Rs 1.66 per km for integral coaches and super luxury coaches respectively, officials said.
The hike came in wake of rise in operational costs due to consistent increase in diesel prices, they said.
It has also been decided that a minimum of 3 per cent hike in bus fares will be made every year, they said.

Bus fares were last hiked in October 2012 by almost 20 per cent.
PRTC has 1,023 buses in its fleet, while Punjab Roadways has 1,800 buses running on various routes.
Meanwhile, the Transport Department has also decided to raise the motor vehicle tax for all types of vechiles from Rs 2.75 per seat to Rs 3 per seat.