Long-haul bus fare cut by 3 paisa per kilometre

The government today reduced passenger fare by Tk 0.03 per kilometer for long-haul buses after the recent cuts in fuel prices.

The Road Transport and Bridges Ministry took the decision upon two proposals forwarded by Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) and bus owners, a circular issued in this regard said.

In effect, while travelling from Dhaka to Chittagong, which is roughly around 250 kilometres, the cost will not come down any more than Tk 8 per ticket.

The move comes following last month’s price cut decision of Tk 10 per litre from octane and petrol while Tk 3 per litre from diesel and kerosene.

Oil prices in the international market have been falling since 2014. However, the government did not lower the oil prices, saying that it would help state-run Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) to make profit and flourish.

Oil prices dropped to as low as $27.65 a barrel in January this year before rebounding recently to $40 a barrel, putting further pressure on the government to lower domestic fuel prices.

But the government had been defiant against adjusting the prices to allow the BPC to repay its loans and recoup the losses it had incurred between fiscal 1999-2000 and 2014-15.