Ticket prices shoot through the bus roofs

The festive season has started this Friday in the state with Ganesh Chaturthi. This also marks the start of the long weekends and many from the city prefer to go to their hometowns to celebrate or take a vacation. With increased demand, bus ticket prices have become more expensive – so much so that the prices have almost tripled in some cases. For example, a ticket in a luxury class Bengaluru-Hyderabad bus costs about Rs 1,000 plus during normal weekdays and has now risen to Rs 2,000. Surprisingly, a bus ticket to Hubballi on a normal day would cost around Rs 500-Rs 700 and prices have now skyrocketed to Rs 2,400 in a pair of buses.

Sanjay Deshpande, a tech who is planning to go to his hometown of Hubballi, said: “It is customary for us to travel to my hometown during the festival. This year turns out to be a shock as I had to pay Rs 9,600 for four tickets Even the return tickets to Sunday evening are quite expensive.” James Matthew, who plans to go to Goa, said tickets are hard to come by and it seems the prices are too high. “Because there are a limited number of buses, travelers have no choice but to pay a high price,” he said.

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A bus company told Bangalore Mirror de covid pandemic has hit them hard with transport companies suffering huge losses. “Since last year we have had to pay salaries to our staff and maintain buses with hardly any income. This is the only time we get a huge demand for bus tickets and so prices are going up due to the increased demand,” he explained.

Warning:

Health experts advise people to exercise caution when traveling. “Covid is still around us and it is always advisable to exercise caution when leaving homes. We have seen examples in other states where covid cases are increasing after festivals. Travelers should therefore always take this into accountm”, according to an expert.