1,521 private buses fined in 4 days for overcharging and flouting rules

The passengers complained that during Holi and other festivals, luxury buses overcharged them

The Regional Transport Offices (RTO) across Maharashtra has initiated action against tourist buses for overcharging passengers during festivals. The buses were also penalised for other offences and traffic violations. "We had issued a warning and following passenger complaints, initiated action," Maharashtra transport commissioner Avinash Dhakne said.

In the past four days, between March 16 and 20, as many as 1,521 buses were found indulging in violations. Of these, around 103 were found overcharging passengers, while 1,418 were fined for other offences and violations. From these, overall a fine of Rs 22,19,700 was recovered. The highest number of violations were in Panvel and Thane, followed by Amravati and Kolhapur.

The passengers complained that during Holi and other festivals, luxury buses overcharged them. Given the shortage of buses due to the ongoing MSRTC strike, passengers have been heavily dependent on private tourist buses. Last month, the transport department had issued a circular mentioning that private buses could charge a maximum 50 per cent over MSRTC (state bus) fares, not more than that.

"It is observed that usually during the festive seasons, private bus operators indulge in unfair practices like overpricing of fares and unsafe passenger travel. This year, due to the MSRTC strike and relaxations in Covid-19 restrictions many people are travelling after six to seven months, hence, there is a huge demand for private buses," a senior transport official said. "Our action will continue and we appeal to passengers travelling by private tourist buses in Maharashtra to alert us of any violations and overcharging of fares on transport.commr-mh@gov.in so that specific action could be initiated," he added.

Rs 22 lakh
Fine recovered from pvt buses in 4 days across state