Revised fares: Rs. 165 in Sarige buses, Rs. 198 in Rajahamsa, Rs. 330 in multi-axle, Volvos, EV
Mysore/Mysuru: The toll being collected on the Mysuru-Bengaluru Highway has impacted the fares in the buses run by Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) as the Corporation has decided to pass on the user fee for the Expressway to passengers.
KSRTC hiked the ticket prices for all buses soon after the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) started collecting toll for buses operating through the first phase of the newly inaugurated Expressway between Bengaluru and Nidaghatta at Kanaminike Toll Plaza. The hike is applicable to all buses including Electric Vehicles (EV) and Volvo buses.
“With a view to offset the cost, KSRTC is constrained to levy a user fee of Rs. 15 per passenger travelling in Karnataka Sarige buses, Rs. 18 in Rajahamsa buses and Rs. 20 in other buses/multi-axle buses including Volvos and EVs. This user fee is applicable only for the passengers travelling in the buses operated exclusively on the Expressway. The fares will not be increased on the buses that ply on the service roads,” KSRTC Chief Traffic Manager said in a statement.
At present, the KSRTC operates non-stop bus services between Mysuru and Bengaluru and the fare in the Karnataka Sarige buses is Rs. 150, Rs. 180 in Rajahamsa and Rs. 310 in Volvo. Every day, there are 500 trips and of them, 140 buses cover the distance on the Expressway. The revised fares will be Rs.165 in Karnataka Sarige buses, Rs. 198 in Rajahamsa buses and Rs. 330 in other buses/multi-axle buses including Volvos and EV.
KSRTC Managing Director Anbu Kumar said, “This hike has only been done to recover toll charges. Paying tolls is not a problem for us as we regularly do it everywhere, considering we even have inter-State services. But since this one is slightly higher; it will also be reflected in the ticket prices.” According to reports, private bus operators are also planning for a similar hike.
The Expressway was inaugurated by PM Modi on Mar. 12 and NHAI has started to collect the toll from Mar. 14. However, a section of the population condemned the revision by stating that the sum was ‘exorbitant’.
This post was published on March 15, 2023 7:57 pm