Bus fare hike: Why we need alternative measures to make BMTC sustainable

Buses are a lifeline for many commuters. Experts say the government can support bus corporations in many ways, instead of hiking bus fares.

For low-income communities in Bengaluru, buses are a lifeline. The recent hike of 15% in BMTC bus fares has made commuting more expensive, especially for those traveling long distances. Babu V, a clothes vendor, travels everyday by bus from Kengeri to Vijayanagar. “It takes me an hour to commute,” he says. His ticket fare has increased from Rs 25 to Rs 28. “I don’t think this is a good move. I have to pay extra every month from my earnings.”

Fayaz Ali, a market vendor, who has seen his daily fare rise from Rs 20 to Rs 23, points out that the buses are largely empty. “Many prefer to travel by two-wheelers now, as the commute is faster and they don’t have to haggle over change.”

What the BMTC says 

GT Prabhakar Reddy, Chief Traffic Manager (Operation) of Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), says the last bus fare revision was in 2014. “Diesel rate was about Rs 50 a litre back then and now it is touching Rs 90. Also, we have to pay staff salaries ⁠— if you account for a combination of all these factors, then our fares ought to be raised by 42%.” 

According to him, the 15% increase in fare will only meet partial expenditure. “We have to make our bus services sustainable. Individual ticket prices have increased by only Re 1 or Rs 2. Half of the commuters will pay a maximum of Rs 2 more than the earlier fare,” he says.

Claiming that BMTC is one of the country’s biggest fleet operators, Reddy says BMTC has 1,800 routes, 40 lakh passengers daily and approximately 6,000+ buses. 

However, commuters have complained about the frequency of buses and that many parts are still not connected. Neev D, an IT professional tells us, “The buses are not available at regular intervals during peak congestion.” He also says that because many of the buses were not UPI-enabled, exact change was often an issue.

To this, Prabhakar says, “If people request new services to new areas, we will conduct a survey and if it’s feasible, we will implement it.” 

However, there are still debates over the question of whether fare hikes should be implemented, especially at a time when the city is struggling with traffic and emissions, and sorely in need of better and more public transport. 

Understanding the economics

Srinivas Alavilli, public transport activist, says it is important to understand the concepts of ‘cost per kilometre’ (CPKM) and ‘earnings per kilometre’ (EPKM) in analysing the bus fare increase. He explains it thus:

  • EPKM is a financial metric used in bus transportation to measure the revenue generated for every kilometre traveled by a bus. It represents the total earnings (tickets sold plus advertising etc) divided by the total kilometres operated.
  • CPKM on the other hand is a metric that calculates the total cost incurred by a bus for every kilometre traveled. It helps transportation agencies understand the operational expenses of their bus fleet including cost of fuel, staff, maintenance of buses etc. 
  • If the CPKM is the same as EPKM, that means the bus corporation is breaking even but if CPKM is more than EPKM, then there is a loss in financial terms. 
  • If fuel prices go up, CPKM goes up, widening the ‘loss’, as it happened in Bengaluru with diesel fares going up but not the bus fares. By increasing fares BMTC hopes to increase EPKM. 

Having said that, Srinivas says that there is no city bus system in the world that is “profitable,” as bus fares are regulated universally. BMTC, in fact, is one of the better-run bus corporations compared to other cities of India, with least difference between CPKM and EPKM, which indicates better operational efficiencies and financial management.  

Cities recognise the critical role public buses play in providing mobility for all sections of society and set up institutional budgetary mechanisms to fund the bus agencies based on CPKM and EPKM metrics. “This helps bus agencies to continue providing bus services without disruption, due to rising operational costs such as fuel.  In India, states like Tamil Nadu ensure that fluctuations in diesel prices do not negatively impact bus commuters, but absorb the additional costs incurred for fuel by MTC, the city bus corporation of Chennai,”  he adds.


Read more: BMTC needs more support for a sustainable free bus scheme


Prioritising buses

The moot question is whether the burden on bus corporations due to periodic increases in operational costs should necessarily be transferred to commuters. Even a hike of a few rupees in ticket prices amounts to a significant percentage increase in monthly and annual expenditure for many regular bus commuters, especially from low-income communities. 

Srinivas says it is about time the Government of Karnataka puts in place a systematic mechanism in the state budget to help strengthen the finances of all city bus operations. “Lakhs of people depend on them for education and livelihood, and public bus transport is considered an essential service.” 

Bengaluru Bus Prayanikara Vedike (BBPV) has issued a press release demanding the bus fare hike be withdrawn. They have stated that the government must explore other options to raise revenues such as parking fees and congestion tax. BBPV says that the government should drop projects like tunnel roads and signal free corridors, and use that money to strengthen the bus system instead.  

Citizen activist Vinay Sreenivasa says that the government must prioritise bus services. “The government should be spending on public transport instead of expensive infrastructure projects. They need to expand the capacity and coverage of bus services to serve more people.” 

Shaheen Shasa, a volunteer with BBPV, also raises the issue of unnecessary and unjust subsidisation of car usage. “Why is parking free? The beautiful life-giving avenue trees on major city roads like Sheshadri Road were sacrificed to widen those roads, the added space now used for parking. We keep providing heavily subsidised or free real estate for car parking in the city.”

Shaheen feels that the government should make it expensive to use cars through prohibitive parking fees, congestion fees, traffic cess for big employers who provide parking and encourage public transport by reducing bus fares or making buses free for all. 

Speaking of free bus rides, the Shakti scheme in Karnataka enables all women and trans women domiciled in Karnataka to travel free in all ordinary government-run (excluding premium, AC or luxury)  buses within the state, with only their ID cards. Regarding the impact of the scheme on BMTC earnings, Srinivas says: “The Government of Karnataka reimburses BMTC for the free travel for women (a notional free ticket is issued so that BMTC has a record), so there is no “loss” as such. In fact, many women bus users continue to pay for their bus tickets (voluntarily) even under Shakti,” he says. 


Read more: Free bus OK. Smart card yaake?


Ideally bus travel should be free for all, feels Shaheen.  “Women and gender minorities are relatively more vulnerable communities and the Shakti Scheme is a social investment that promotes greater mobility for them.”

Shaheen in fact echoes what has been shared by many advocates of subsidised public transport: “Public transport does not have to recover costs, it should be free; the more people travel by bus, the better it is for the city as a whole. The city will benefit through less congestion, less fuel use and pollution, lower temperatures and climate risk, fewer accidents and greater economic activity, a vibrant public life and greater investment.” 

Women at a bus stop in Bengaluru
The free bus scheme has been quite popular in Bengaluru. Pic: Bhanu Sridharan

A question of design and planning too

Shaheen says that effective public transport facilities and accessibility is also related to the larger issue of how the city is designed. 

“I stay in Marathahalli and I get buses easily. But many parts of the city, like Hosa Road or Sadaramangala or even parts of Koramangala, do not have easy access to or availability of buses. There is inequitable investment in and use of infrastructure for cars and no thought for pedestrians and bus commuters, who form the silent majority,” says Shaheen.

She also points out how walking to the bus stop is a risky and daunting enterprise for the average commuter, navigating flyovers and underpasses and unsafe footpaths and crossings. Bus commute becomes time consuming because a few thousand buses have to compete with lakhs of private vehicles on the road. 

Proposed BMRCL fare hike

Meanwhile, as the bus fare hikes are implemented, there is a looming hike in Metro fares, albeit still under discussion. Yashavanth Chavan, Chief Engineer and Chief PRO, Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL), says that the fare hike will be announced shortly and that the last fare hike was in 2017. “Wait for the announcement, all the details will be given then,” he told us.

Previously, a three-member government panel had recommended the fare hike, which is binding on BMRCL. The BMRCL has to depend on the state government for support. BMRCL has argued that their costs are higher compared to BMTC, hence the decision to implement a high fare hike.As per reports, public feedback was sought during October 2024.   

The question remains: Should public transport be incentivised or encouraged more, so that people choose affordable and sustainable modes of travel over private cars?

Srinivas says raising bus or metro fares could lead to increased congestion and pollution as some public transport users are likely to switch to personal vehicles. “The Bengaluru Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) can make informed decisions on fares and funding mechanisms to strengthen public transport services seamlessly based on data and global service level benchmarks,” he says.

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Comments:

  1. ilika ranjan says:

    This is such a pertinent article and well researched and articulated.

    I hope you publish an article on why there is no garbage management system in our country when we have municipal corporation and mayors?
    why cities like Indore, Mysore and Chandigarh remain clean and not others.
    I visited Bangalore recently. the route from airport to Whitefield ( we took the outer route) was inundated with littered roads, garbage piles and unswept roads. Many foreigners travel through that road to Whitefield. can we not for once show a clean face?

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