High intercity bus fares perturb passengers in Punjab

Public transporters have inflated bus fares on the pretext of increase in oil prices

LAHORE: Passengers, who are leaving the provincial metropolis to celebrate Eidul Fitr with their families, are perturbed by the high fares at intercity terminals. They complained that public transporters have inflated fares on the pretext of increase in oil prices.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, various passengers said that every year before Eid, bus operators fleece passengers by increasing bus fares for intercity travel. “Though ahead of Eid, this year petroleum products prices have increased, this is a routine complaint. Every year during the festive seasons, passengers have to face the exploitation at the hands of public transporters,” said Muhammad Jameel, a passenger boarded on a bus from a private bus terminal on Bund Road.

Bus fare hike: Commuters pay through the nose to celebrate Eid with loved ones

To avoid rush and hassle of longqueues at bus terminals, a student, Rashid Khan, said that he had booked ticket for his town, near Bahawalnagar, almost a week ago. But, due to huge rush and limited number vehicles, he had to pay a little higher fare but he is satisfied that he won’t face the difficulty on the last day.

Another passenger, Usman Latif, said: “Every bus terminal in the city is crowded with passengers who are leaving to celebrate Eid with their families. I have tried my luck at three terminals but failed to get hold of a seat for my hometown Arifwala,” he said sadly. Latif also indicated bus operators are overcharging passengers in the absence of any regulatory mechanism.

A middle-aged passenger, Bashir Ahmad, pointed out that most bus terminals are selling tickets at inflated rates of 15% to 30%. “I tried to register my complaint in the office of a bus terminal but witnessed very cold response indicating bus operators are involved in profiteering.

Huge rush at train stations

Similarly, a huge rush is also witnessed at Lahore Railway Station as a large number of passengers have started leaving Lahore to celebrate Eidul Fitr holidays with their loved ones in their home towns. A passenger, Kashif Ameen, said though under the leadership of Sheikh Rasheed, Pakistan Railways performance has improved slightly, cleanliness of coaches and platforms in ‘Naya Pakistan’ still needs attention of the top officials.

He shared that torn-out seat covers and dirty coaches are making foul of the hollow claims of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government. Staff members of the Pakistan Railways on the train were also very discourteous and blaming passenger rush for poor cleanliness, he maintained.

On the other hand, provincial transport authorities claim that public transporters cannot increase fares on their own. The department is monitoring the entire Eid operation and special duties have been assigned to staff members to monitor fares.

A senior official claimed that dozens of vehicles have already been impounded or slapped penalty for overcharging passengers.

He warned public transporters to comply with notified tariff rates otherwise they could also face huge inconvenience if the department take action against them.

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Special trains

The Pakistan Railway running five special trains to facilitate passengers. A few days ago, Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed, in a press briefing, said that the service shall commence from June 2.

The first train is expected to run from Karachi to Peshawar at 10:45am. Another train on the same day shall depart from Quetta to Rawalpindi.

Other special trains are set to depart on June 3 and 4 from Karachi to Lahore and Rawalpindi to Quetta respectively.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 2^nd, 2019.