With the government failing to regulate the so-called “seating service” bus operators in the capital, the buses continue to charge extra every day.

Around 96 percent buses and minibuses offering “seating services” are taking extra fares, a survey of a passengers' platform revealed yesterday.

Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity, the platform, said in the name of “seating services,” 96 percent buses and minibuses lock their doors between 7:00am and 11:00am and 2:00pm and 11:00pm, causing trouble for passengers who want to get on the buses between their starting point and journey end.

Those buses take extra fare as they do not follow the government's fare chart, the platform alleged, saying, “For this reason, transportation cost for the lower-income group is becoming unbearable.”

Unregulated charging of fares is common throughout the year but during Ramadan many regular buses turn themselves into “seating services” putting passengers in trouble, Mozammel Haque Chowdhury, secretary general of the samity, observed.

“Cashing in on the higher demand for buses before Iftar time, they [bus operators] overcharge the passengers,” he told The Daily Star referring to the survey yesterday.

The transport owners on April 15 last year stopped operating “seating service” buses in the capital amid widespread allegations that they were charging extra fares.

Following that move, Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) in association with Dhaka Road Transport Owners' Association's (DRTOA) vigilance teams conducted mobile courts to stop such practices.

But the move backfired as a good number of buses were withdrawn from the road for five consecutive days, causing immense sufferings to the passengers.

Against the backdrop, BRTA suspended their drive for 15 days and later for three months. It has been more than a year now since they stopped the drive.

SURVEY RESULTS

From the second to seventh Ramadan, five teams of Jatri Kalyan Samity conducted the survey on 310 buses and 557 passengers in different spots.

As part of the study, they also surveyed 214 CNG-run auto-rickshaws, 185 auto-rickshaw passengers, and 56 taxi passengers.

Around 82 percent of the surveyed passengers expressed deep discontent over the services of the public transport sector during Ramadan.

Ninety-two percent passengers said they face sufferings every day, while 98 percent said they are victims of overcharging, the survey shows.

Sixty-two percent passengers said they are forced to get on and down from moving buses, while 28 percent have to stand on the bus even after paying for “seating service”.

Ninety-three percent passengers do not know where to file a complaint, while 88 percent said they do not bother to file a complaint as they believe they would not get any remedy.

They survey shows 94 percent CNG-run auto-rickshaws run on a contract basis and 98 percent of those who follow the meter claim extra fares or tips. They usually demand Tk 10, but during Ramadan they want Tk 30 to 35.

Asked about the allegations, Mahbubur Rahman, organising secretary of DRTOA, refuted the allegations of overcharging.

“In many cases, we take less than the government-fixed fares,” he told this correspondent yesterday.

On the standing passengers in “seating service” buses, he claimed some passengers take help from traffic police to board the bus during peak hours.

COMMITTEE FORMED, BUT NO REMEDY

In April last year, BRTA formed an eight-member committee to make recommendations for quality passenger services in the public transport sector in Dhaka.

Led by Mahbub-E-Rabbani, director (road safety) of BRTA, the committee on October 15 gave seven recommendations over “seating service” and 26 recommendations for public transport sector, insiders said.

The BRTA on February 14 held a meeting with the stakeholders including leaders of transport owners and workers and decided that all recommendations submitted by the committee would not be implemented right now.

The BRTA on April 17 sent several recommendations to Dhaka Metro Regional Transport Committee (MRTC), which gives route permit for the metropolis, and the authorities concerned to implement those.

A copy of the recommendations was sent to the commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, who is also the chairman of MRTC, the chief executive officers of both city corporations, and the associations of transport owners and workers.

A deputy director of BRTA (Dhaka Division), who is also the member secretary of MRTC, was asked to include those recommendations as an agenda of next MRTC meeting.

“We have sent the recommendations and it is now the responsibility and MRTC and other authorities concerned to implement those,” Mahbub-E-Rabbani, also the spokesperson of BRTA, said on May 21.

Contacted on April 26, Masud Alam said they had received the proposal sent by BRTA.

“Now we will talk with the Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner who is the chief of the committee and set the next course of action. We will take a decision in this regard soon,” Masud added.

Contacted again yesterday, Masud said, “We will go for implementation of the recommendations after holding a meeting with the stakeholders.”

Asked about a possible date of the meeting, he said, “We will hold the meeting soon.”

Mozammel alleged that the government takes some initiative following public pressure but it actually does not want to take action against the “seating service” bus operators. For this reason, no action was taken even after formation of a committee more than a year ago.

BRTA RECOMMENDATIONS

According to BRTA proposals, bus operators will have to take separate route permit for running seating service buses.

The operators will not be able to use all its buses for seating service as they will have to earmark a bigger portion of their vehicles for non-seating services.

The MRTC will decide how many buses of a company can offer seating services, the proposal says.

Seating service offering buses will have a different colour determined by the MRTC. These buses will be comparatively new and comfortable and will not be allowed to take any standing passengers.

There will be a different fare rate for the seating service buses. Every “seating service” routes will be divided into slabs and the fares will be fixed on the basis of those slabs.

The city corporations will have to build city stopovers in Mirpur and Anandabazar areas, set up counters for seating service buses, install CCTV cameras on different important points and bus bays on appropriate spots, the recommendations read.