THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Three and a half years have passed without giving life to the public transport integration project that brings private buses under the KSRTC through fixed rents. This integration project will not only avoid unnecessary fare hikes, but will also enable more buses to run on rural routes. Private buses often demand fare hikes and tax concessions, citing difficulties in operating the service due to rising expenses. The integration project is structured in such a way as to solve issues faced by bus owners by paying rent that is higher than the daily income.
The project was prepared in September 2018 when Tomin J Thachankary was the head of KSRTC. The initial planning was done in consultation with the leaders of private bus owners' organizations. The project was formulated by following the models in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana. The government's transport corporation is responsible for the entire bus service in these three states.
Cost and tax of diesel will be borne by corporation
At that time, Thachankary had told bus owners that a non-AC bus would be given Rs 12 per km and an AC bus would be given Rs 19 per km as rent based on the models from the three states. Some bus owners had demanded a rent of Rs 15. If the rent is Rs 15 per km, a bus will get Rs 4800 per day. AC bus will get Rs 6080 at a rent of Rs 19 per km. The cost and tax of diesel will be borne by the corporation. Under this project, private buses will be driven by private bus drivers themselves. These buses will have a KSRTC conductor. The private bus owner must pay the driver's salary from the income.
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