The city’s buses and minibuses are reportedly charging more from passengers than the prescribed minimum fare of Tk 7 and Tk 5 respectively set by the government after the price-hike of compressed natural gas in May.
The Bangladesh Road Transport Authority, which is carrying out regular drives against bus companies charging extra fare, have filed 702 cases, sent 11 offenders to jail, realised Tk 8,17,100 in fines, seized 83 buses and minibuses and 16 route permits from May 15 to June 30.
Jasmine Akhtar, who rode on a bus of the Taranga Plus Transport Ltd from Shankar to Dhaka City College on Tuesday, said she had to pay Tk 10 as minimum fare.
Other bus companies like Nisharga Transport, Megacity Passenger Service Ltd, Malancha Transport, Midway Transport Ltd and Maitree Transport also charge Tk 10 for the minimum distance.
The employees at the counters of the bus services said their company would run at a loss if they took only Tk 7 as minimum fare.
They also said every bus hangs the fare chart fixed by the BRTA only to show them to officers of the mobile courts.
Super, Maitree and Malancha transport companies were also charging Tk 10 from Press Club to Shahbagh.
Hafiz, a passenger who rode a bus of the Silk City Service, said that the conductor took Tk 10 from him when he wanted to go to Kazipara from Mirpur-10.
It was also seen that the bus conductors demanded Tk 13 for Mirpur-10 to Farm Gate and Tk 22 from the same place to Karwan Bazaar.
The bus conductor said that Tk 22 was also the fare to Motijheel and there was no separate ticket for every bus stop.
At Mirpur-10 square, Safety Enterprises demanded Tk 10 as minimum fare while other bus companies like Shikar Transport and Mirpur United Service Ltd refused to accept any passenger for the minimum distance.
‘The BRTA has only two executive magistrates, which is not enough for a big city like Dhaka,’ said executive magistrate Mohammad Tofael Islam.
He said that five executive magistrates of the Dhaka district also help them in the drives but they had been busy with the Union Parishad elections.
Islam suggested that the traffic police can also help to enforce the fare chart, and the amount of fine prescribed by the Motor Vehicle Ordinance 1983 should be increased.
The Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s joint commissioner (traffic), Mahbubur Rahman, told New Age that they were also carrying out drives against buses and minibuses that are charging extra fare.
‘We have a plainclothes team,’ he said, and said that measures would be taken against any transport company for exceeding the fare chart if someone provides specific information against them.
The government on May 16, after the price-hike of CNG, increased the bus fare by Tk 0.35 a kilometre in Dhaka and Chittagong cities, and set the minimum fare at Tk 7 for buses and Tk 5 for minibuses in the capital.
Communications minister Syed Abul Hossain on May 28 said the government would cancel the route permits of the bus companies that charge extra fares.
The High Court on May 30 issued a six-point directive, including one for putting up the fare chart, set by the communications ministry, on display at ticket counters after bus operators started charging fares at their sweet will.
-With New Age input
