Private bus fares skyrocket ahead of Deepavali

Private bus fares from Bengaluru to cities such as Hubballi-Dharwad, Mangaluru, Belagavi, Vijayapura, Kalaburagi, Hyderabad and Chennai have shot through the roof ahead of the Deepavali holidays.

A seat on a non-air-conditioned sleeper bus that usually costs Rs 800 is selling for over Rs 2,000. A similar seat on an air-conditioned sleep bus that usually costs Rs 1,000 is now selling for Rs 3,000 or more.

Fares on some buses are as high as Rs 5,000, almost rivalling airfares.

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The exorbitant fares are being charged for travel on October 21 and 22. The fares drop only slightly for travel on October 22 and 23.

The Transport Department seems to be sleeping.

In 2015-16, the department sent a proposal to the state government recommending a "reasonable" cap on surge pricing in bus fares on a per-kilometre basis. The government ignored the proposal, an official said on the condition of anonymity.

According to the official, the department can still act. The bus operator can be penalised for violating permit conditions. But the penalty is low: Rs 5,000 for the first offence and Rs 10,000 for the second.

Repeat offenders can have their permits suspended, or in extreme cases, cancelled. Companies that operate long-distance buses are issued tourist permits, which are rarely suspended or cancelled.

Transport authorities conduct drives at places near the Navarang Theatre, Tumakuru Road, Ballari Road, Old Madras Road and Hosur Road. But only a handful of bus drivers are penalised and they simply get away by paying the meagre fine, the official stated.

In the extreme event of the permit being suspended, the bus operator goes to court and easily gets the suspension revoked, the official said.

C Mallikarjun, Additional Commissioner for Transport (Enforcement, South), did not respond to phone calls seeking comment.

KSRTC, NWKRTC and KKRTC have marginally increased the fares but do not run enough buses. The South Western Railway (SWR) is running special trains at Tatkal fares to clear the festival rush.