Make errant private bus operators behave

The assault on three passengers by the crew of a private luxury bus in Kerala has turned the focus not only on the plight of people who must depend on such services for their long-distance travel, but also on a system that has allowed proliferation of dubious bus operators who have scant regard for either safety and comfort of the people they transport or rules and regulations of the land. While the people involved in the assault are being brought to book and the bus operator is being investigated, the fact is that the authorities had no option but to act after a video of the assault went viral.

This can’t be seen as a one-off incident. The rot runs deep. Hundreds of private operators are running long-distance bus services, exploiting the inability of government-run bus services and railways to cater to people’s travel needs. Among them, violation of rules is blatant and fleecing is the norm. Their offices and buses are staffed with goons so as to intimidate passengers. And, most of the operators survive, and flourish, with help from police and transport officials. It’s this nexus that has emboldened the bus operators to treat passengers like the goods they transport. 

The passengers mostly have horror stories to narrate—of rude behaviour, dirty buses, being dumped midway, etc. The fact is that these interstate bus services are illegal in a way. The buses have contract carriage permits that allow them to carry people point to point but are being run as stage carriers, picking up passengers along the way.

That way, operators pay less tax, and officials let them ply their trade in the name of facilitating people to travel. While private bus services cannot be done away with, considering that other options available are grossly inadequate, they should be made to follow certain norms. A strong monitoring system needs to be put in place and fleecing, stopped. A fare structure that operators must adhere to, even during holidays, safety features in buses and compulsory training for crew on etiquette and safe driving will help. It’s time the errant operators are made to behave.