VIJAYAWADA: In what comes as a rude jolt for the public, Transport Commissioner N Bala Subramanyam has clarified that the transport department has no authority to control or regularise the ticket prices of private buses.
He inaugurated the Point of Sale (PoS) machine, to carry out cashless transactions, at Deputy Transport Commissioner (DTC) office here Tuesday. Addressing the mediamen later, the Transport Commissioner said that private travel companies operate in a free market where the ticket fares depend on the demand, at any given point of time. So, the transport department has no authority to bring the ticket prices down and regularise the same, he explained.
The transport department is the first to implementing cashless transactions, through credit and debit cards, by installing POS machines in all its 96 units across the State. In the first phase, 45 machines will be installed and another 45 machines are yet to be received, he informed.
As regards demonetisation, he stated that the impact was felt by the department only for two days, as there was a slight dip in the booking of cars in showrooms. However, when the transport department approached the State Bank of India officials, seeking a solution to the people’s problems, the latter agreed to install 45 POS machines, as part of encouraging digital transactions, he said.
On the occasion, Ramesh Babu, who came to the DTC office for his licence renewal, carried out the first cashless transaction worth `560.