The government has been able to set bus fares lower than the rational figure after discussion that took everything into consideration, road transport and bridges minister Sheikh Rabiul Alam has said.
He said that operators charging more than the government-set fare would have their route permits cancelled, that fines would be provided for, and that they would also have to answer for whether route permits should be granted to them in future.
He made the remarks on Tuesday (September 22) afternoon at the Secretariat, replying to questions from journalists.
Saying the notification on the newly set bus fares would be published that same day, the road transport minister said: “Once it is gazetted, that means it takes effect.” He added: “The fuel crisis is worldwide, and fuel prices had to be raised in an unavoidable situation. When fuel prices rise there is a rational demand for transport fares to rise. There is also a long-established process by which, if the price of fuel rises by one taka, the fare rises by one paisa, and that is tolerable.”
He said that the previous time, under this government, when the price of fuel oil rose by 15 taka a litre, there was a rational demand for fares to be raised by 15 paisa.
Management costs had risen because of the rise in the price of the dollar, he said, and the sector had demanded that this be taken into account. If fares are not raised after maintenance costs rise, they make a loss. “We did not take that into account last time. We were able to hold the increase to 11 paisa,” he said.
“This time it has risen by 20 taka a litre, so under the established process the rise is 20 paisa. They were not willing to accept anything below that in any way. They had also demanded that we take maintenance costs into consideration this time,” he said.
The minister added: “You could call it good news that 17 paisa has been set instead of 20 paisa.”
Answering a question, he said: “There is a great deal to consider. But the reality is that the transport sector’s costs have risen, and maintenance costs have risen. The price of the dollar has risen, and there they demanded something like 20 paisa. You will not deny that those who have vehicles know how much the price of accessories has risen. It has risen worldwide, and it has risen in Bangladesh too. The government has always tried to make an adjustment with the public interest in mind.”
“I would have been glad to be able to reduce fares,” he also remarked.
On complaints that excess fares are already being charged in many places, the road transport minister said: “Let me speak from my own experience once. Last time we raised it by 11 paisa, it took effect, and nobody charged more than that. This time it has been raised by 17 paisa, and there will be no departure from that, and none will be allowed.”
“In one or two isolated places they have asked for this; that tendency exists in our country. It is not as though the transport sector in our country is entirely disciplined and entirely follows rules and orders. That has to be admitted,” he added.