Transporters announce to increase fares

Local public and goods transporters have announced to increase fares following the hike in fuel prices.

The Transporters’ Union of Rawalpindi on Sunday announced to revise fares for intercity, intra-city and goods transport after the federal government hiked the prices of petroleum products.

The transporters termed the hike inevitable to meet their running expenditures, as, according to them, they could not purchase expensive petrol and diesel and keep the fare low.

Goods transporters have also announced to increase the fare after which prices of daily-use commodities were likely to surge.

Read Transporters unilaterally increase intra-city bus fare

Local bus and van transporters in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad have also announced to increase the stop-to-stop fare by up to Rs8 without waiting for the official nod.

If the government allowed the transporters to increase prices, longer routes and intercity bus fares were expected to soar by up to Rs700.

Meanwhile, Regional Transport Authority officials said that they would formally request the Punjab government to increase the fares officially. However, they said that action will be taken against the transporters if they resort to a unilateral price hike prior to the official notification.

An RTA official said that any decision to hike fares has to be made at the province level.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 18^th, 2021.