Kathmandu, October 25

The Department of Transport Management (DoTM) is preparing to introduce a new mechanism to determine public transportation fare.

The government had introduced public transportation fare determination mechanism in 2009, which gives 65 per cent weightage to prices of non-fuel items and 35 per cent weightage to price of fuel while determining the public transportation fare. However, DoTM is mulling over introducing a new mechanism to determine the fare citing that the old mechanism is not contextual.

“We have been examining the mechanism which was introduced a decade back to determine public transportation fare. A committee has been formed to study the mechanism and make it more contextual,” informed Gogan Bahadur Hamal, director general at DoTM.

DoTM currently determines public transportation fare based on 18 indicators, giving 65 per cent weightage to prices of non-fuel items and 35 per cent weightage to price of fuel. “However, number of indicators can be altered in the new mechanism based on the recommendation of the committee,” added Hamal.

The non-fuel indicators include vehicle cost, price of spare parts, labour cost, price of tyre and other lubricants.

Among others, transport entrepreneurs have been seeking amendment to the existing public transportation fare determination mechanism citing that the prevailing mechanism does not match the current market scenario, especially inflation.

Meanwhile, Hamal also clarified that the government will not review public transportation fare under the existing mechanism. “Though transporters have been urging for review of the public transportation fare, we will go for it only after the new mechanism is adopted,” he added.

DoTM plans to introduce the new mechanism to determine public transportation fare within the next couple of months.

However, transport entrepreneurs have urged DoTM to immediately review public transportation fare under the current mechanism, while working on the new mechanism.

“It is certain the government will take a long time to introduce new mechanism. As cost of operating vehicles has risen notably along with rise in inflation, the government should immediately raise public transportation fare,” opined Saroj Sitaula, general secretary of Federation of Nepali National Transport Entrepreneurs.