The UT Administration is likely to increase the fares of Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU) buses plying in the city. CTU has drafted a proposal for the hike and will send it for approval to officials concerned. S P Parmar,CTU General Manager said,Fares will be revised shortly. We will soon forward the proposal to the competent authority for approval. We are positive about it. According to official sources,a 30 to 40 per cent increase in rates has been proposed. New fares could be announced in the next 15 days. Pass holders could heave a sigh of relief,as only a 10 to 15 per cent increase has been proposed. At present,there are only two slabs in AC and non-AC buses. Tickets in AC buses cost Rs 10 and Rs 15,while in non-AC buses they are for Rs 5 and Rs 10. There is a proposal to introduce a third slab in the fare chart. Once the new fares are implemented,tickets for AC buses will be Rs 10,Rs 15 and Rs 20,whereas for non AC buses it will be Rs 5,Rs 10 and Rs 15. The proposal to increase the fares was also made in August,2013,but due to some disagreement between various authorities it could not be implemented, a CTU official said. Around 1.76 lakh commuters use the CTU service everyday. The proposed increase will pinch the pockets of these commuters. However,according to CTU,which aims at adding new buses to its fleet and provide more comfortable service to the commuters,this hike is necessary.
