Image of APSRTC buses used for representational purposes. (Photo | Prasant Madugula, EPS)
VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) has earned a revenue of Rs 4.46 crore by operating 2,026 special buses from September 25 to October 5 to various destinations across the State for providing hassle-free journeys during the Dasara festival season.
According to the RTC officials, the corporation has bettered its earnings by almost Rs 2 crore as compared with the earlier year by running 2,026 special buses and ferrying around 40,000 passengers every day during the festive season.
Special buses were operated from Hyderabad to major cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, Visakhapatnam, Tirupati and Vijayawada. Over the years, RTC has been charging 50 per cent extra fares as the buses would be empty on one side. However, the RTC didn’t charge extra fares this year.
Private operators also have been increasing ticket prices by double or more and burdening the passengers. With the decision of APSRTC, neighbouring states also had to keep the charges normal. This time, private operators also had to reconcile and could not resort to steep hikes in ticket rates. The passengers breathed a sigh of relief this holiday season with lesser fares.
By attracting passengers with low fares, the APSRTC has been able to operate the total planned buses (2026) this time against the 1,020 special buses operated last year. Even if there is no additional charge, the income seems to have almost doubled compared to last year.
Both staff and passengers are happy about the decision to normal fares. The RTC has kept 2,400 buses ready for return journeys from October 5 to 10. All arrangements are made to operate more buses to meet the rush of Bhavanis to Kanaka Durga Temple, Vijayawada.
