Chennai: In order to increase revenue, the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) has increased cut services. However, officials maintained that they did so in some routes, while commuters complained that they need to wait for long time to catch MTC buses for reaching their destination. According to sources, ever since the transport department hiked bus fare, the MTC is facing considerable loss of revenue. To compensate the loss, the corporation is taking various mechanisms including operating cut services and increasing ordinary buses.
“The fact remains that cut services would pave the way for increasing revenue. At the same time, selective routes, which have high patronage, should be used,” said an MTC conductor. He also suggested that the government should reduce issuing bus passes, which remains as main factor to reduce the revenue.
Meanwhile, commuters put the blame on MTC. “Unlike in the past, I am rarely finding direct buses. For instance, I would usually take D70 bus to reach Velachery from Ambattur industrial estate and there would be more such buses. However, the officials nowadays operate these buses till Guindy, instead operating to Velachery,” said a commuter. So, he needs to get down of the bus in Guindy and subsequently, take another bus to reach Velachery, the commuter lamented.
When contacted an MTC official, he said that they were not resorting to such practices in all the days. “Considering patronage, we sometime operate cut service buses particularly during holidays. We are keen that passengers should not suffer,” he said, adding that he would look into the issues and stop cut services on certain routes.
