Private bus threat & signal .... Some operators will consider running buses with the present fare structure if the govt bears the fuel cost

Kinsuk Basu, TT, 18.05.20, Calcutta: Private bus operators have refused to run buses from Monday after the government ruled out a revision of the fares.

Some, though, have said they could consider the government’s appeal to keep running buses with the present fare structure if the government bore the fuel cost. Fuel, according to them, is the biggest component of the daily expenses of running a bus.

Private bus operators had proposed a fare revision if buses were to run with only 20 passengers. Transport minister Suvendu Adhikari ruled out a revision and said on Saturday that the government would provide necessary support if operators followed the existing fare structure and resumed bus services.

A few hundred more state buses will be available from Monday, in addition to the existing strength of 300 on 13 routes, a transport department official said on Sunday.

A detailed plan has been readied so that the waiting time of commuters is reduced to half of what it was last week, the official said. He did not specify, though, how many more buses would ply.

More officials will be present at depots so that buses can roll out every half an hour, he said. Police have been requested to ensure the presence of cops at bus stops rush hour to avoid crowding, he said. “All conductors have been briefed that the 20-passenger limit cannot be crossed.”

Private buses comprise close to 70 per cent of the transport options in the city. “The government can requisition our buses like the election commission does during polls and pay a daily fee of around

Rs 2,000 apart from bearing the fuel cost,” Tapan Bandopadhayay, secretary of the Joint Council of Bus Syndicates, said. “But before that let the transport department prepare a list of expenses to run a bus for at least three trips a day and make the necessary calculations.”

Taxis

Taxi operators, who had proposed a fare hike, said they would hit the roads from Monday with the existing fare.

“We will have a few taxis on the roads on Monday. Most would like to see how things unfurl… the number will go up in the next few days,” Bimal Guha of the Bengal Taxi Association said.

Sambhu Nath De, secretary of the Progressive Taximen’s Union, said drivers had been told to keep sanitisers and masks. “No one will be allowed to seat beside the driver.”

“The state government is obviously aware of how things would stand in the absence of private buses… we are certain that it will take some decision in the coming days,” Rahul Chatterjee, secretary of Bus Minibus Samonnoy Samity, said.Private bus threat & signal

Some operators will consider running buses with the present fare structure if the govt bears the fuel cost.