Private operators make a killing, charge excess fares

Hyderabad : With most of the 10,000 buses of Telangana State Road Transport Corporation staying off roads due to employees strike, private operators are making a killing by fleecing commuters,despite being warned against it.
The state government had granted temporary permission to many private bus operators to run as stage carriers to help people travel during the festive season. Autorickshaws and cab aggregators are also resorting to surge pricing, keeping in view the demand in the city. Several hundreds of cars, vans and mini buses near bus stands at various towns across the state and offering rides at exorbitant prices.
“ Some goods transport vehicles are also used to ferry people, taking advantage of the situation.Multipurpose Utility Vehicles, which carry people for shorter distances are charging double the price. For a 70 km distance, the normal charge is less than Rs 100. But they charge over Rs 300,” Srinivas Vasireddy, a website administrator.
A senior RTC official said they usually earn between Rs 10 crore to Rs 12 crore a day during the festival season and currently were not getting even half of it. The charges are now anywhere between Rs 800 to Rs 1000 from Hyderabad to Vijayawada as demand goes up. The usual charge is just about Rs 300, Murali Krishna, a businessman and regular commuter said.
Authored by Mohammed Hussain, mohammedhussain.reporter@gmail.com Twitter:  @writetohussain Tags charge excess fares private operators TSRTC strike