Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway: Karnataka hikes bus fares — Check revised prices here

The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has increased the user fee for passengers travelling on the new Bengaluru-Mysuru expressway. The hike has been levied to offset the cost of the newly constructed expressway inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 12.

Each passenger travelling on KSRTC buses will have to pay Rs 15 on Karnataka Sarige buses, Rs 18 on Rajahamsa buses and Rs 20 on other buses/multi-axle buses.

The user fee has been levied to offset the cost of the newly constructed expressway, and it will only be applicable to passengers travelling on buses that exclusively operate on the express highway.

The user fee will not be levied on other services, and this is a practice followed on all toll roads.

The National Highways Authority of India has started collecting user fees from passengers travelling through the first phase of the new expressway between Bangalore-Nidhaghatta at Kaniminike toll plaza on the National Highway No-275 Bengaluru-Mysuru route from March 14.

Just hours after toll collection began on Monday on the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway, massive protests broke out across toll collection centres.

Protesters complained about the lack of toilets, first aid assistance, ambulances and other facilities along the expressway despite the high toll. They demanded that adequate facilities be first added to the expressway before the toll collection can begin.

Questions have also been raised about the “unscientific design” and features of the expressway.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Karnataka on Sunday to inaugurate the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway among other infrastructure projects worth Rs 16,000 crore.

The Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway is expected to reduce travel time from 3 hours to 75 minutes. The project involves six-laning of the Bengaluru-Nidaghatta-Mysuru section of NH-275. The 118-km-long project has been developed at a total cost of around Rs 8,480 crore.