MSRTC daily ridership crosses 60 lakh; fares to rise by 15% soon

Mumbai: The MSRTC daily ridership has crossed 60 lakh, up by 11% in a year. This increase is mainly due to a rise in the number of women passengers, who receive a 50% concession.
While the ridership has increased, anofficial from Mantralaya informed the media on Wednesday that the bus fares of MSRTC could rise by 15% soon. “There is a proposal for a fare hike before the transport department, and the hike is pending since 2023,” the official said, adding that the hike is being demanded due to increasing fuel costs, overhead costs, rise in salaries of staff, and maintenance costs of buses.
A 100-bed hospital for ST employees is being set up in Borivli. Many bus stations in the state are being developed on a build-operate-transfer basis, and the same is being done at the Borivli depot, where the developer will revamp the depot premises and use additional space for commercial purposes.
As per the latest roadmap for the bus fleet of MSRTC, there is a plan to phase out 2,000 diesel buses in two years. During the same period, there is a plan to induct 10,000 new buses, with 50% of them running on electric, said the official.
The MSRTC already provides concessional travel to senior citizens, including free bus travel to those above 75 years of age. State buses cover every nook and corner of Maharashtra, said the official. “Around eight lakh students avail of free travel by state buses, and this is social work on the part of the transport corporation,” he said.