Overcrowded intercity terminals charge high fares to passengers

ISLAMABAD: Intercity terminals in twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad on Tuesday seemed overcrowded with passengers on Tuesday after starting official holidays of Eid, heading towards their hometown to celebrate the festival with their families.

People with families and lots of luggage waiting at the major bus stops, including Peshawar Morr, Faizabad, Pirwadhai, G-9 bus stand and Saddar where people are trying hard to get a seat to reach their destinations, paying double fare.

Majority of the people send their families on weekend to avoid the hardship of last day rush before Eid and opted to join them later but still large people hailing from other cities striving hard.

Rain also added fuel to their injuries, saving themselves and their luggage of being wet and get the seat at the earliest.

Passengers who were facing difficulties in seat reservation due to a shortage of transport said that the public transporters were charging extra money from travelers with impunity.

Ayub Jamali, a government employee from Hyderabad said his family moved on Friday but he stayed due to his duty and now failed to get a ticket even on double fare rate.

Awais another passenger, informed that he had to reserve a seat two days earlier, as he knew about the shortage of transport. He expressed his dismay on the transport system and urged the new government to consider hardship of people and take appropriate steps to facilitate them.

Saddat Hussain finding out a bus for Gujranwala appeared to be angry over the idiosyncratic management of the bus services who were giving preferences to those who came up with some references or ready to pay double fares.

He said that on Eid there were other expenses like buying an animal for sacrifice, new clothes and shoes for children and lot of other things but the demand of double fare from transporters is an extra burden on their pockets.

Sikandar Alam working for a bus service at Faizabad clarified that they were serving the public on ‘first come, first serve’ basis. He, however, admitted that they were facing the shortage of vehicles due to a high influx of passengers.

Meanwhile, Hassan Khalid a resident of Rawalpindi who came from Lahore told that he usually traveled in reputed private transport services but had to embark on a local bus due to non-availability of seats.

The transporters, he claimed, were fleecing the public and demanding the extra bucks, urging the authorities concerned to be watchful against overcharging.

The drivers, however, had their own reasons for over-charging from high petroleum prices to challans. They justified high fares claiming that diesel rates have increased. They further added that they are serving people through plying vehicles rather than spending their families so, it’s their right to charge extra bugs.