Kerala's Regional Transport Corporation (KSRTC) recently decided that the weekend bus fares for trips from Bengaluru to Kerala will be hiked by 30 to 50% and it's troubling passengers. The online booking rates of AC buses have also gone up by 50%. The SWIFT Garuda AC seater buses have also hiked the weekend rates.
While an AC multi-axle bus from Bengaluru to Thiruvananthapuram costs around Rs 1500 on weekdays, the charge for the same bus on a Friday is Rs 2291. A seat of a SWIFT hybrid non-ac seater cum sleeper, which costs around Rs 1371 on Fridays, costs only Rs 1053 on weekdays. While it's usual for buses to charge higher fares during festival seasons and private carriers to hike prices during weekends, KSRTC's decision has miffed passengers.
