Mark out bus types to charge new rates: Madras High court

Madurai: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High court on Monday directed the commissioner of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) to file his response on a petition demanding not to implement the ticket hike until the government differentiated the ordinary and express buses with different colours.

An advocate Rajendran from Tiruchy in his petition filed in the court said that around 22,509 buses of various categories including ordinary, express, deluxe, bypass rider ultra-deluxe buses were being operated in Tamil Nadu. When the govt increased the bus fare on January 19, they did not follow the Motor Vehicles rules, he charged.Though the buses which were declared as ‘Express’ plied like ordinary buses, the TNSTC was collecting higher fares from the passengers for travelling in those buses, he said, adding, that those buses stopped in all the stops to board passengers.

As per ticket fare hike regulations, Rs 102 should be charged for travelling between Madurai and Tiruchy in ‘express’ buses, but the corporation is collecting Rs 120 per ticket from the passengers, he said.

Moreover, the fare differs in each transport division functioning under the state transport corporation, said the advocate.

To operate the ordinary buses as ‘express’ buses, the corporation should get the permission as per the rules. But without getting the required nod, the ordinary buses were operated as ‘express’ buses, said the petitioner.

After examining the petition, the court directed the transport commissioner to file his counter and posted the next hearing to February 26.