Government hikes public transport and cargo fares, again

KATHMANDU: MAY. 18 – The Department of Transport Management on Tuesday increased public transport fares in response to the new hike in fuel prices.

Public transport fares have been jacked up by 3.5 percent. The department said that the fares have been revised according to a new ‘auto pricing mechanism.’

The government on April 30 decided to implement an automated pricing system. Under the system, the government, which regulates the fares, can revise fares up and down whenever the prices of petroleum products fluctuate by more than 5 percent.

With the latest revision, the fare in the Kathmandu-Dhangadhi-Sitanadi-Sanfebagar route, which is 899.6 kilometers and the longest, will now cost Rs2,675. Earlier, it was Rs 2,585.

Similarly, according to the department, the fares of cargo carriers plying hill roads has been increased by 4.6 percent. Cargo carriers in the Terai area have been allowed to hike fares by 5.1 percent.

The revised fares will come into effect from Wednesday, the department said in a notice.

The Nepal Oil Corporation on Saturday increased the prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene by a steep Rs10 per liter each. The hike was made immediately after concluding the local elections a day earlier.

The state-owned oil monopoly has jacked up the price of petrol 13 times in a year.

Petrol now costs Rs170 per liter, a 38.21 percent jump from last year.

Diesel has become dearer by 44.33 percent in the past year and now costs Rs153 per liter.

Economists see the possibility of a further rise in inflation as the Russia-Ukraine war is likely to continue for months, if not years. Fuel prices have skyrocketed because of the war.

Last time the government had allowed transport entrepreneurs to jack up fares on April 3. The fares of public vehicles plying long routes were increased by 10 percent.

Similarly, the fares of cargo carriers plying hills and Tarai roads were increased by 13 and 15 percent, respectively.

In July last year, the Department of Transport Management had permitted a 28 percent hike in transport fares on inter-provincial routes. Carriers serving routes in the Tarai and the hills were allowed to hike freight charges by 26 and 20 percent, respectively.

-Kathmandu Post