Amritsar, March 9 High fare and low shuttling frequency is keeping passengers away from metro buses running on the two routes under the bus rapid transit (BRTS) project. While commuting on a bus from the railway station to India Gate and Celebration Mall to Verka, it was observed that there were no passengers on board. Metro buses got passengers only in the morning, when trains arrived in the city. Most passengers get on a metro bus from the railway station to Khalsa College route or from Guru Nanak Dev University. People also hop on metro buses from Verka to Celebration Mall or from Mall Road. During the day time, buses run without passengers. Not a single person got on board when The Tribune team commuted on a metro bus from railway station till Khandwala station on Wednesday at 1:15 pm. While returning from the GNDU to railway station only two passengers got on the bus. Employees of the company, operating the bus service, said they managed booking worth Rs 2,000 to 2,500 in a day. A bus consumes 60 litre fuel every day. They stated that passengers were not comfortable with the Rs 10 and 15 bus fare. “It should be Rs 5 and Rs 10. Even one month after the inauguration of the project residents are not using the bus service,” they added. Ashwani Narang, a supervisor at the Metro Bus said, “We have 14 buses on road. It is true that we are not getting passengers as per expectation. We are planning to revise fares to encourage more people to use our bus service.” He said, “The frequency of buses will also be increased. We hope that after these steps people will prefer using metro bus service.” According to the information the company operating the bus service has also written to the administration to remove illegal auto-rickshaws from roads in the city.

Stay updated with all the Amritsar Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.