Where is the daily bus pass you had promised, minister?
Ram.Sundaram@timesgroup.com
Chennai:20.01.2020
It has been two years since the government scrapped the ₹50 daily passes for travelling on Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses. When complaints poured in, transport minister M R Vijayabaskar soon promised that the scheme would be revived soon after fixing security issues (by adding QR code on printed passes), but nothing has materialised.
According to official data, around eight lakh passengers bought the daily and monthly passes (₹300-₹1,000) every month. This was almost one-fourth of MTC’ss daily footfall. Distribution of both these passes was suspended after the bus fare hike in January 2018. But ₹1,000 worth monthly pass scheme was revived a month later and since then it's average monthly sale increased from 50,000 to 80,000 per month.
Sale of other monthly concession passes (₹320 for 10km and ₹370 for 15km) was also on the rise as it helped people save on commute expense. And then the government scrapped it. V Baskar, a collection agent from Nanganallur, said the pass was a great relief for him. “My job is to collect dues and clear orders from customers in Tambaram, Guindy and Vadapalani. Given the nature of my job, I can’t commute by train and I have to depend on buses and autorickshaws. Instead of spending ₹50, I end up spending double the amount every day and this is one-third of what I earn,” he said.
MTC also reduced the frequency of buses plying along some suburban routes on which daily ticket collection was below par. T Sadagopan, a civic activist from Avadi, complained that MTC has stopped operating buses along B70 (Pattabiram-Guindy) route, and passengers from Avadi have to get a bus to either Ambattur or Vadapalani to reach Guindy. Without daily passes, passengers spend ₹80-₹100 per day. That too none of these buses (plying towards Tambaram) enter Guindy Industrial Estate to drop passengers at the Ekkaduthangal CIPET traffic signal. One has to walk at least a kilometre to reach the estate from this bus stop, he said.
When the matter was taken to him an MTC official said the daily pass was suspended after they found out many started misusing it by sharing it with friends. “It hasn't affected our patronage much,” he said.
MTC reduced the frequency of buses along some suburban routes on which daily ticket collection was below par
Ram.Sundaram@timesgroup.com
Chennai:20.01.2020
It has been two years since the government scrapped the ₹50 daily passes for travelling on Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses. When complaints poured in, transport minister M R Vijayabaskar soon promised that the scheme would be revived soon after fixing security issues (by adding QR code on printed passes), but nothing has materialised.
According to official data, around eight lakh passengers bought the daily and monthly passes (₹300-₹1,000) every month. This was almost one-fourth of MTC’ss daily footfall. Distribution of both these passes was suspended after the bus fare hike in January 2018. But ₹1,000 worth monthly pass scheme was revived a month later and since then it's average monthly sale increased from 50,000 to 80,000 per month.
Sale of other monthly concession passes (₹320 for 10km and ₹370 for 15km) was also on the rise as it helped people save on commute expense. And then the government scrapped it. V Baskar, a collection agent from Nanganallur, said the pass was a great relief for him. “My job is to collect dues and clear orders from customers in Tambaram, Guindy and Vadapalani. Given the nature of my job, I can’t commute by train and I have to depend on buses and autorickshaws. Instead of spending ₹50, I end up spending double the amount every day and this is one-third of what I earn,” he said.
MTC also reduced the frequency of buses plying along some suburban routes on which daily ticket collection was below par. T Sadagopan, a civic activist from Avadi, complained that MTC has stopped operating buses along B70 (Pattabiram-Guindy) route, and passengers from Avadi have to get a bus to either Ambattur or Vadapalani to reach Guindy. Without daily passes, passengers spend ₹80-₹100 per day. That too none of these buses (plying towards Tambaram) enter Guindy Industrial Estate to drop passengers at the Ekkaduthangal CIPET traffic signal. One has to walk at least a kilometre to reach the estate from this bus stop, he said.
When the matter was taken to him an MTC official said the daily pass was suspended after they found out many started misusing it by sharing it with friends. “It hasn't affected our patronage much,” he said.
MTC reduced the frequency of buses along some suburban routes on which daily ticket collection was below par
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