40pc buses charging extra fares

Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader yesterday said some 40 percent public buses are charging more than the already hiked up fares.

The government increased the fares of bus and minibuses by 10 paisa per kilometre in Dhaka and Chittagong cities and other areas under Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA) -- Gazipur, Munshiganj, Narayanganj, Manikganj and Narsingdi districts. The minimum fare is Tk 7 for buses while Tk 5 for minibuses, he mentioned.

"My assumption is that some 40 percent buses and minibuses are charging additional fares," he said, while addressing a signing event of annual performance agreements at the Bangladesh Secretariat.

The minister said during his field visits in the last few days he found many buses charging additional fares beyond the revised fare chart.

"After receiving complaints from passengers, I've found that some state-run BRTC buses are also charging extra fares…this has surprised me. Mobile courts have taken legal actions against them," said Obaidul.

He urged public transport owners to follow the revised fare chart and not to charge additional fare.

Obaidul said no transport vehicle, without having digital number plate (retro-reflective number plate) and radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag, can ply anywhere in the country after January 1.

He asked owners of all vehicles registered with the Bangladesh Road Transport Athority (BRTA) to collect digital number plates and RFID tags by December 31.

The Road Transport and Highways Division signed the agreements with its affiliated four agencies to improve their performance in the current fiscal year.

Secretary to the Road Transport and Highways Division and the chiefs of its four bodies-- Roads and Highways Department, BRTC, BRTA and DTCA--signed the agreements.

As per the agreements, a set of targets has been fixed for the agencies to achieve in the current fiscal year.