COIMBATORE: With fuel prices rising by around Rs 3 on Friday morning, private bus operators expressed concern that the increase would further hurt a business that has been in decline for more than five years. They urged that the state government should increase fares for private buses as per court directions.
The manager of a private town bus (route 1C) that runs from Vadavalli to Ondipudur in Coimbatore, on condition of anonymity, told TNIE that private town bus owners operate at a loss mainly because diesel prices have risen while fares have not been revised for eight years.
"For instance, on our route, daily collections are around Rs 12,000. Of that, we spend about Rs 7,000 on diesel to fill 75 litres, and Rs 3,000 on crew salaries. The remaining Rs 2,000 includes Rs 200 for cleaning and Rs 150 as the bus's parking charge at the petrol bunk. On average, our income is only about Rs 1,500, and this is lower on Sundays," he explained.
"Owing to the diesel price hike, we will lose about Rs 225 of that income. How can we run a business with only about Rs 1,000 left? It is a loss for private bus operators. Additionally, we also have to pay about Rs 40,000 every three months as road tax, and we spend another Rs 1 lakh each year to obtain the fitness certificate," he lamented. He added that some buses earn only Rs 500 per day and run simply because there are no better business prospects.
Another bus operator said, "Fares were fixed at a minimum of Rs 5 for town buses in 2018, and they are still charging the same. Since 2018, diesel prices have gone up by 58%, bus tyre prices have increased by up 70%, and maintenance costs have also increased, making bus operations more difficult. Before 2021, we earned around Rs 1,60,000 each month as income, but this fell to about Rs 30,000 per month owing to the free travel scheme for women on corporation buses and rise in diesel prices," he recalled.
"The government should increase minimum fare for town buses from Rs 5 to at least Rs 10, and raise mofussil fares from 58 paise per km to Rs 1 per km, so that private operators can run services with minimum profit," he urged. He added that around 5,000 buses are operated, and hundreds of operators are affected.
Secretary of the Coimbatore District Bus Owners Association, P Mani, said that because the government failed to increase fares in line with diesel prices, they filed a case in the Madras High Court. The court directed the formation of a committee to fix fares for private buses, but the state government has not acted on it owing to the election. He urged Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay to take immediate action.
The issue is not limited to private bus operators, as officials from TNSTC said it would also cause further losses to them.
A TNSTC official said, "The transport department procures fuel from oil companies in bulk at Rs 89.44 per litre, as of Friday. So far, the revised prices have not been communicated to us. If the price rises by Rs 3, it would affect TNSTC financially.
When contacted, a senior officer from the transport department said that officials from the home department can make a decision on the fare hike for private buses.