Eidi on their mind, transporters hike fares

With limited options, passengers forced to pay through noses.

ISLAMABAD:

Despite the Supreme Court’s “Eid gift” for those running vehicles on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), the Rs30 slash in CNG prices provided no relief to people in the twin cities who used public transport over the Eid break.

Not only did the Punjab Transport Authority fail to issue a notification to reduce transport fares, but some intercity transporters also demanded ‘Eidi’ from commuters on top of regular fare.

“I was charged Rs40 for a ride from the airport to Zero Point, whereas the regular fare for the route is Rs24,” said Imtiaz Hussain, a commuter from Rawalpindi. “When I told the van conductor that the Supreme Court had reduced CNG’s prices, he told me to pay up or get off the van.”

The commuters often had to oblige given that there was also a shortage of buses and vans during the Eid holidays.

At the Polyclinic Bus Stop, Muhammad Shahid, who works at a car repair shop in Rawalpindi, said he and his family had no option but to pay almost twice the normal fare to reach his brother’s house in Islamabad.

“We had to pay the extra fare on the van because taxi drivers were asking Rs400 for the same trip,” Shahid said.

Irfan Ali, a van driver on the (Rawalpindi) Saddar - (Islamabad) Prime Minister’s Secretariat route, said some van drivers charge extra because they have to celebrate Eid as well. He said drivers and conductors usually make Rs1,500 on a regular day, but on Eid there are fewer commuters and it’s difficult to meet their daily target.

However, Ali said he and his conductor had not charged commuters any extra fare during Eid.

While some commuters were overcharged, others, especially those travelling short distances, said they had been spared. “Intercity travellers were luckier I guess, said Zaman, who was travelling from Aabpara to F-6.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 30^th, 2012.