Students, poor residents fear bus fee increase

VietNamNet Bridge – A proposal by the HCM City Department of Transport to increase bus fares is causing a stir among many poor students and residents.

Commuters from Nguyen Van Cu Street in Long Bien District take the bus from Ha Noi to neighbouring Hung Yen Province.

At the end of last year, the department submitted a plan to the municipal People’s Committee to increase local bus charges. If the proposal is approved, ticket prices would increase by VND1,000 from March 1st.

The price of a ticket for routes under 31km would then be VND4,000. Moreover, monthly vouchers would be replaced with books of 60 tickets, costing VND120,000 (US$7), and VND85,000 ($5) for students.

"When all things are increasing in price, how can students like me get by if bus prices also go up?" asks one student who must take two buses from her house to her university. If prices are to increase, she will have to spend VND16,000 each day travelling.

Nguyen Thu Thuy, a resident of District 6 and a regular bus passenger, says that monthly tickets should not be abolished.

"It doesn’t make sense to raise prices and abolish monthly tickets. Those monthly passes are very convenient for students," Thuy says.

Tran Quang Phuong, head of the department says that the increase is due to hikes in fuel prices, as well as basic salaries.

Moreover, statistics supplied by the department say that in 2008 the city had to subsidise VND625 billion ($35 million) for the bus services sector.

In regards to the abolition of monthly tickets, Phuong says that many passengers have complained of being discriminated, and this is not why the department has decided to replace it with 60-ticket booklets.

However, Thuy says that this should be solved by improving services, not getting rid of monthly passes.

Pham Xuan Mai, a lecturer at the HCM City University of Technology, says that increasing bus fees will stop many students from riding every day.

"Most passengers are people with low incomes or students. If the city wants to encourage people to travel by bus, prices should not be increased," he says.

Nguyen Huu Huong, head of the Transport Technique Faculty at the university, says that until the municipal infrastructure improves, subsidies for this kind of service should not be provided.

"Increasing bus prices will create more burdens for people on low incomes," says Huong.

The municipal People’s Committee has not yet made a final decision on the proposal.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News