KOCHI: Even if the ticket fares are hiked from February as announced by the state government, operators of most of the private buses plying in Kochi city will still find it difficult to meet the operational cost. Of the 640 private buses, only 325 are now operating on various routes in the city.
According to office-bearers of Kerala Private Bus Operators’ Federation (KPBOF), of the total buses, nearly 200 of them have stopped services after the first and second lockdowns. “Of the vehicles that stopped operations, owners of nearly 20 buses have cancelled the permits. Some others have surrendered the permits and sold the buses or shifted to other districts. The major reason is the dip in ridership due to Covid and the huge rise in fuel prices,” said KPBOF president M B Sathyan.
The price of a litre of diesel in November 2020, when the private buses resumed service after the first wave of Covid, was `74. “Later, the price increased to nearly Rs 100 per litre. This happened when the number of passengers was coming down drastically,” he added. Another issue faced by some of the bus owners is the renewal of fitness certificates.
“The Centre and the state government have given extension for the renewal of fitness certificates of buses to December 31, 2021. Now, the owners of many buses have withdrawn services as the fitness certificate is mandatory to restart services. For renewal, an owner will have to spend Rs 60,000 in tax and another Rs 8,000 towards the welfare fund. If the insurance premium is pending, another Rs 60,000 will have to be spent. Owing to the financial crisis, many owners are not able to meet these expenses,” he said.
The private bus operators are also apprehensive of the Omicron variant which is spreading in the state.
“Even if the government hikes the ticket charges, the collection of buses will dip further if the Omicron wave increases. The chances of more buses being withdrawn are high,” said a private bus operator.
If more buses stay off the road, there will be a severe transportation crisis for commuters who depend mainly on private buses. The worst affected will be the travellers to West Kochi areas, where there are no Metro services.