Omni bus fares hiked ahead of elections, causing inconvenience to passengers
Tamil Nadu: Travelers are facing increased fares on private buses ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. Voting is scheduled for April 23rd in the state, and residents of other districts working in major cities like Chennai are traveling to their home districts to cast their votes. This has increased pressure on transport services.
For the convenience of passengers, the State Express Transport Corporation has announced the operation of 5,574 special buses from April 21st. Despite this, a large number of people are resorting to private omnibuses due to the unavailability of tickets on government buses.
Taking advantage of this situation, many private omnibus operators have increased fares substantially. Fares from Chennai to major cities like Madurai, Coimbatore, Salem, Trichy, Tirunelveli, and Nagercoil have been increased several times.
On Tuesday and Wednesday (April 21 and 22), the fare for a regular sleeper bus from Chennai to Tirunelveli has been increased from ₹1,400 to ₹3,000. Similarly, the fare for Thoothukudi has risen from ₹1,700 to ₹3,200. The fare for Madurai, which was previously around ₹1,100, has now reached ₹3,500.
Fares to Trichy have also seen an increase, with fares previously around ₹1,500 now reaching ₹2,600. Overall, fares from Chennai to various cities have increased by ₹500 to ₹2,000.
Passengers say that similar fare hikes occur during festivals like Diwali and Pongal, but this increase during elections is making them more difficult. Many have called this unfair and have demanded that the administration take action.
Increased movement during elections increases demand for private transportation services, which impacts fares. At present, the administration has not announced any strict action regarding these increases.
A large number of people are heading to their respective constituencies to vote on April 23rd. This increased demand for transportation, coupled with the increase in fares, has raised concerns among ordinary travelers.
