No seatless travel on RTC luxury buses: HC

A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Tuesday held that the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) should comply with the Kerala Motor Vehicle Rules prohibiting standing passengers in luxury services such as super deluxe, super express, and super-fast buses.

The court, however, made it clear that the government could make proper modification in the provisions if it deemed it necessary.

The Bench comprising Chief Justice Antony Dominic and Justice Dama Sheshadri Naidu made the ruling when a petition filed by the Centre for Consumer Education challenging the revision of fares in super class services came up for hearing.

The petitioner had sought to ensure that the super class services operated by the KSRTC complied with the provisions of the Kerala Motor Vehicle Rules on standing passengers.

According to the petitioner, the third proviso to Rule 267 (2) of the Kerala Motor Vehicle Rules did not allow standing passengers in luxury service buses.

However, the KSRTC operated its luxury services allowing passengers to stand on the buses.

The petitioner alleged that fares in the super class services were revised without conducting any economic study.

At the time of introducing the super class services, the State had allowed the service providers to charge an extra fare in order to make up for the loss on account of the ban on travel of passengers by standing on the buses.

In the subsequent fare revision, the fares were increased disproportionately without considering the fact that the super class service providers were permitting standing passengers.

The revision of fares in the super class services was done without relying on any material.