39 private buses fined Rs 94,000 for overcharging during festival

  • | Thursday | 15th November, 2018

We expect that the action will set a right precedent and deter private operators from fleecing passengers,” he said.Sadamate denied any delay in initiating action against errant bus operators. “We verified passenger complaints and carried out action. AURANGABAD: Acting on passenger complaints related to overcharging by a large section of private buses during the recent festive season, the regional transport office has cracked whip against 39 errant vehicles.The authorities have collected Rs 94,000 as fine , besides realising tax related dues worth Rs 7 lakh from the owners of these buses.TOI had highlighted the issue of overcharging during festival season and the inaction by the RTO machinery in safeguarding the interests of passengers. As per the directives, these operators can charge a maximum of 50% more for each kilometre, as compared to the fares charged by the state transportation for categories such as AC seater, non-AC seater, non-AC sleeper and AC-sleeper. Aurangabad-Pune, Aurangabad-Nagpur, Aurangabad-Mumbai and Aurangabad-Nashik were some of the routes which were witnessing heavy rush of passengers, prompting private buses to overcharge them.Out of the 39 buses which have faced action, 18 were still detained at the RTO, whereas three cases have been referred to the court and the rest of the buses have been handed over to the owners after paying penalty and dues, regional transport officer Satish Sadamate said on Wednesday.“The crackdown was carried out in the light of enabling provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act 1988.

AURANGABAD: Acting on passenger complaints related to overcharging by a large section of private buses during the recent festive season, the regional transport office has cracked whip against 39 errant vehicles.The authorities have collected Rs 94,000 as fine , besides realising tax related dues worth Rs 7 lakh from the owners of these buses.TOI had highlighted the issue of overcharging during festival season and the inaction by the RTO machinery in safeguarding the interests of passengers. Aurangabad-Pune, Aurangabad-Nagpur, Aurangabad-Mumbai and Aurangabad-Nashik were some of the routes which were witnessing heavy rush of passengers, prompting private buses to overcharge them.Out of the 39 buses which have faced action, 18 were still detained at the RTO, whereas three cases have been referred to the court and the rest of the buses have been handed over to the owners after paying penalty and dues, regional transport officer Satish Sadamate said on Wednesday.“The crackdown was carried out in the light of enabling provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act 1988. We expect that the action will set a right precedent and deter private operators from fleecing passengers,” he said.Sadamate denied any delay in initiating action against errant bus operators. “We verified passenger complaints and carried out action. Also, at the outset of the festive season, we had warned operators from indulging in any illegal practice,” he said.The RTO authorities said similar action will be carried out on a periodic basis, especially during vacations when private bus operators tend to overcharge passengers due to heavy rush.Sadamate said passengers can raise their grievances with RTO by sending a mail on mh20@mahatranscom.in or by using the official mobile application or by ordinary mail.Passengers can also register their grievances on www.transportcomplaints.mahaonline.gov.inThe state transport department, on April 27, had fixed the maximum fare that private bus operators can charge from passengers. As per the directives, these operators can charge a maximum of 50% more for each kilometre, as compared to the fares charged by the state transportation for categories such as AC seater, non-AC seater, non-AC sleeper and AC-sleeper.

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