Demand for raising ticket prices

In a meeting this week between the BRTA and the road transport and bridges minister to stop the operation of unfit vehicles during the Eid rush, private bus operators made the illogical demand of increasing bus fares during this period by Tk 50. This comes just days after the minister criticised the prevalence of unfit vehicles plying our roads—this meeting should have been about addressing that issue. Instead, as the minister put it, the transport leaders were more concerned about taking advantage of the situation, putting their profits first.

As early sales of tickets started ahead of the Eid holidays, passengers have already complained about being overcharged by Tk 30 to as high as Tk 120. This is on top of the blatant disregard for vehicle maintenance, causing tailbacks and putting passengers' lives at risk. In this context, the fact that transport owners and leaders are demanding an official price increase shows their priority is profit, not service. The majority of consumers of bus services will be people from the lower and middle-income groups. And given that tickets are already being sold at hiked prices, who is to say that the Tk 50 will not "unofficially" turn into Tk 150 given the demand.

The Bangladesh Road Transport Workers Federation general secretary's response made it all too clear that they are adamant in raising the prices, one way or another. If this is allowed to happen, an appalling precedence will be established—like prices of essentials, it will become common practice every year. Our experiences show that it is uncommon afterwards for the price to go down again. We hope that the minister will be strong in his stance to not allow this price hike, and ensure proper monitoring and action for those bus services who are already over-charging their passengers.