BMTC has their own way of setting their fare, i.e. through stages. For example, a bus route is divided into number of stages and rates are fixed accordingly. The reason, I dedicated a post to it was the following experience I had.
Case 1:
Bus route used for travel: Vajra 195; route: Shivajinagar to Chandra Layout (via KBS,Vijaynagar).
I boarded the bus at KBS and bought a ticket to Chandra Layout. The conductor gave me a ticket of Rs. 15. The whole experience was nice(that being my first time in Vajra). The bus had automatic transmission, but still the driver couldn't drive properly. Lot of jerks were experienced by me. One good point though was he didn't have to stop the buses at most stops, since everyone would consider Vajra something very costly and would wait for normal buses. This would make the journey faster, say by 5 minutes. Everything went on well, accomplished the desire of travelling in Vajra once. Being the owner of the student pass(another senseless idea), I wouldn’t find travelling in Vajra economical.
Case 2:
Bus route used for travel: Vajra 333T; route: Marathalli Bridge, BDA complex(Nagarbhavi) (via KBS,Vijaynagar, Chandra Layout)
Dismissing my economical ways of travelling in normal buses, I boarded the bus at KBS. This was a newly launched route at that time. So when I asked for the ticket, the conductor demands Rs. 18. I argued that the fare in Vajra 195 is Rs. 15. He says that the stage in 195 is Chandra Layout, whereas the stage in 333T is Nagarbhavi, so the difference. I say I travel the same distance, in the same route but pay different rates. Why is this so? He says, that you have to ask BMTC. I pay him after scrutinizing a piece of paper, which had all the listings of different stages and different fares. So I concluded that you can travel a same route but pay different fares for them, in the same class of service, since your stages are not same.
I think the whole process is wrong. Above all BMTC fares are costly. I pay Rs. 5 for travelling 3 km here. Whereas in my hometown, where private buses are mode of transport I also pay Rs. 5. So what is the use of Govt. transport. Also, I may get a concession in my hometown if I travel in the same bus daily, which would amount to Rs. 3, making it cheaper. Of course, passes are provided by BMTC. They are also costly. A daily pass cost Rs. 32. 32 is costly and senseless pricing. The conductor and the passenger fight for Rs. 2 change. BMTC need a complete revamp on their pricing. This is what I feel. But I guess they are busy introducing new buses, new models of buses in the same old routes.
