TSRTC gearing up for free travel scheme

If implemented across both TSRTC Palle Velugu and Express buses, anticipated cost of implementing the free bus travel for women scheme in Telangana will be Rs 2,200 crore per year

Hyderabad: Days before the Congress party’s decision to launch free bus travel for women in Telangana, which is part of the pledged six guarantees during poll campaign, the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) had initiated the process of preparing ground for smooth implementation of the initiative.

Senior authorities said that if implemented across both TSRTC Palle Velugu and Express buses, anticipated cost of implementing the free bus travel for women scheme in Telangana will be Rs 2,200 crore per year. In case the initiative is limited only to the fleet of RTC buses under Palle Velugu, then it would cost an estimated Rs 750 crore per year.

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To ensure the free bus travel scheme for women is implemented efficiently, for the past few days, senior RTC officials have been actively involved in taking stock of the financial implications and viabilities of providing free bus services to women across various bus categories.

A similar scheme is already operational in Karnataka, which prompted RTC officials to plan a two-day visit to Bengaluru for further insights into its execution. “A team of officials from the TSRTC just visited Karnataka to meet the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) officials for the purpose of studying the scheme. They will be visiting places like Bengaluru and Gulbarga,” said a senior TSRTC official.

Scheme covers all RTC services

The free bus travel for women scheme in Telangana encompasses all TSRTC services including city, ordinary and express bus services.

Under the scheme, women can avail free bus services only within Telangana. Travel to State borders, even if initiated within Telangana, will necessitate purchase of tickets.

It is learnt that the TSRTC is also exploring reimbursement mechanism on free travel for women. The government will reimburse RTC based on the actual distance travelled by women.

Shakti Scheme in Karnataka

The Shakti Scheme allows women in Karnataka to travel for free on non-premium buses plying within the State. Launched on June 11, it has benefited 38.69 crore women until August this year and cost the State exchequer Rs 900 crore.

While the government allows women to produce their ID to make use of the scheme, it is stipulated that they would need to get smart cards on its Seva Sindhu portal after three months.

But technical constraints and operational problems have held up the process. Women will be given smart cards that will serve as ID cards.

Vehicle strength

At present, TSRTC has 9,233 buses including City Ordinary, Metro Express, Metro Deluxe, Palle Velugu, Express, Deluxe, Super Luxury and Luxury buses, including Rajdhani, non-AC sleepers and Garuda Plus. The fleet covers 32 lakh km on 3,328 routes per day and transports about 45 lakh passengers to Telangana and the bordering States of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh. As of 2023, nearly 50,000 personnel including those on contract basis are working with TSRTC. The corporation has a daily collection of more than Rs 13 crore.