Omnibus fares up this festive season; non-AC ticket prices increase by 20%

Updated prices posted on assn portal; Chennai-Kovai trip to cost ₹1,800

- B ANBUSELVAN

PEOPLE booking non-AC seater tickets on omni buses from Chennai to various parts of the state this festival season may end up spending at least 20% more than the usual bus fare.

Fares have gone up across all routes and price of a ticket from Chennai to Coimbatore, Udumalaipet and Pollachi is fixed at ₹1,800 apiece. Bus ticket cost from Chennai to Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi and Kanniyakumari districts will be between ₹2,300 and ₹2,500. The updated fare list can be found on the Tamil Nadu Bus Operators Association website (https://www.toboa.in/). The association has released the list fixing maximum fare price for buses operating on 450 routes within and outside Tamil Nadu.

The omni bus fare from Chennai to Coimbatore is currently at ₹1,760, which is at least 20% higher than the ticket cost of Chennai-Coimbatore Vande Bharat (₹1,365). Fares on the premium intercity express trains from Chennai to cities like Tirunelveli, Nagercoil, Bengaluru, Mysuru and on the Madurai-Bengaluru route is around 20% cheaper than non-AC seater omni buses in Tamil Nadu.

It may be noted that State Express Transport Corporation (SETC) is much cheaper as it charges ₹600 for a non-AC ticket and ₹800 for an AC seat on the Chennai-Tirunelveli route.

Similarly, for the Chennai-Coimbatore route, SETC fares are ₹487 for a non-AC seat and ₹630 for an AC ticket.