PATNA: There is good news for women passengers, who are in Patna today. The state transport department has made 130 city buses free to ride for women and girls today on International Women's Day. These buses will be ferrying them free of cost from one place to another in Patna with full security and travelling hospitality.
According to Transport Secretary Sanjay Kumar Aggarwal, on the occasion of International Women's Day, women can travel in such buses on any route for free. "Today, fare is not being charged from women and their utilisation of such buses is an effort towards women empowerment," he said adding that "CCTV cameras have been installed in these buses and equipped with GPS".
"Any passenger can track the location of the bus on their mobile and also know the live location of where the bus is standing, at what time and at what stop,"he said.
He said that one can see the real time of the bus on the State Transport Corporation's "Chalo App". And for those who do not use smart phones, a digital display board is being installed at the bus stop. "In the first phase, action will be taken to install digital display boards at major bus stops on all routes including Gandhi Maidan, Dakbangla Square, Patna Junction, R Block, Income Tax Golambar. In the second phase, there will be a display board at all the bus stops in the city," he said.
In Patna alone, 130 buses ply on 14 routes of the city. The same facility for women and girls was given on the day of Rakshabndhan last year by the department for a day under which more than 60,000 women travelled free. He said that more than 55,000 women and girls travel daily by these buses in Patna.