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Our Bureau

Visakhapatnam , March 31

THE Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation has drawn up plans to introduce 628 new buses during the financial year.

The buses will be introduced on long-distance routes where the passenger demand was heavy as well as rural routes where its surveys have identified the potential, according to the APSRTC Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, Mr P. Gautham Kumar.

``We will soon add 20 new Garuda AC services and another 35 will come next year taking the total AC buses to 100,'' he told reporters, after flagging off 10 mini-buses here on Wednesday.

The occupancy ratio had looked up during the current year due to which RTC could earn an additional revenue of Rs 180 crore, that too without a fare increase, he said. But it was neutralised by the diesel price hike.

Recently, the Transport Minister had agreed to reduce the motor vehicle tax to the level of the tax rate in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and, if that happened, the corporation would earn a small profit, Mr Gowtham Kumar said. He was non-committal on the possibility of fare hike.

On the competition from private operators offering lower fare on AC buses, particularly to Hyderabad, he said that it was only during off-season. When the demand was high, they were charging more. In spite of the private operators offering free dinner, the RTC buses were running at about 80 per cent of OR which testified to the strong passenger loyalty to the RTC, he pointed out.

Mr Gautham Kumar said that RTC had no means of enforcing the rules prohibiting private operators from operating within two kilometres of RTC bus stations. It was for the Road Transport Authority officials to enforce it. He welcomed the idea of a transport regulatory authority.

He said 80 mini-buses had been introduced during the previous year and an equal number would hit the road during the current year.

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