Bengaluru bus fares have increased from Thursday midnight, raising the cost of ordinary BMTC journeys, airport services and intercity travel across Karnataka. The minimum fare for a BMTC journey of up to 2 km has risen from Rs 6 to Rs 10, while fares on KSRTC, NWKRTC and KKRTC services have increased by up to 23%.
The revision makes some short BMTC trips more expensive than comparable Metro journeys. A ride from Majestic to Vidhana Soudha on the Metro costs Rs 10, while a Vajra bus journey from Majestic to Maharani’s College now costs Rs 20. The revised BMTC fare for the 4-km journey between Majestic and Shivajinagar is Rs 18, up from Rs 12.
Fares for longer city journeys have also increased. A 6-km trip now costs Rs 25 instead of Rs 18, while an 8-km journey costs Rs 30, compared with Rs 23 earlier. On selected longer routes, the increase is as much as Rs 12. A journey between Central Silk Board and Hebbal now costs Rs 65, up from Rs 55, while the Majestic-Attibele fare has risen from Rs 60 to Rs 70.
Airport commuters will face higher costs on Vayu Vajra services. The fare from Banashankari to Kempegowda International Airport has increased from Rs 295 to Rs 325. The Attibele-KIA fare is now Rs 425 instead of Rs 405, while passengers travelling from Electronics City to the airport will pay Rs 400, up from Rs 380.
The fare revision also affects passengers travelling outside Bengaluru. An ordinary bus journey from Bengaluru to Nelamangala or Hoskote now costs Rs 44, compared with Rs 35 earlier. On express services, the Bengaluru-Kolar fare has increased from Rs 81 to Rs 100, while the fare to Mandya has risen from Rs 110 to Rs 136. For the first five stages, fares on ordinary services have increased by up to Rs 9, while express services can cost up to Rs 18 more for journeys covering 10 stages.
Transport minister Byrathi Suresh attributed the revision to the financial stress faced by the state’s four transport corporations. He rejected allegations that the Shakti scheme, which provides free bus travel for eligible women, was responsible for the corporations’ financial difficulties, saying the government had been reimbursing the expenditure regularly.
However, Suresh acknowledged that the state government owed the four corporations Rs 6,362 crore in pending reimbursements. The corporations have together recorded losses of Rs 10,200 crore and outstanding liabilities of Rs 9,912 crore, including employee-related dues, pending provident fund and gratuity payments, and loans worth Rs 2,192 crore.
The minister said the corporations had spent Rs 23,002 crore on the Shakti scheme over more than three years and issued 870 crore free tickets. Fuel costs have also increased, with diesel prices rising by Rs 10.47 per litre this year. The corporations procure fuel at Rs 98.13 per litre and have pending fuel bills of Rs 1,111 crore. Their daily fuel expenditure is Rs 15.60 crore, or about Rs 5,694 crore annually.
The government has defended the revision by pointing out that KSRTC, KKRTC and NWKRTC had increased fares only twice in the past 10 years, while BMTC had revised fares once. The revised rates will now apply across city, airport and intercity bus services operated by the four corporations.
