Bhubaneswar: The bus fares across categories were hiked in Odisha on Thursday. The fare revision is mainly attributed to the steep increase in the prices of petrol and diesel.
As per an official notification, passengers will now have to pay Rs 85 paise per km against 80 paise per km for travelling in ordinary buses. Express bus fares have also been increased from 84 to 89 paise per km.
Similarly, the Deluxe buses will now charge Rs 1.21 per km as against Rs 1.11 per km. Similarly, passengers will have to pay Rs 1.42 per km instead of Rs 1.39 per km in case of AC Deluxe category.
Earlier, the State government had come up with a revised fare for super premium buses keeping in view the six laning of national highways for the first time. The passengers will have to cough up Rs 2.32 per km against the previous rate of 2.17 per km.
It is pertinent to mention here that the last revision of bus fares was announced by the State government on February 9.
The impact of rise in the petroleum prices has now started to affect the common man across the State. The hike in bus fares will certainly add to the woes of the commuters, said experts.
(Edited By Pradeep Singh)