Africa-Press – Mauritius. Bus fares will increase by Rs 5 to Rs 10 conditional on the number of stages travelled and based on distance between origin to destination points. Government has also revised Light Rail fares which will vary between Rs 35 to Rs 55. The new fares will be applicable as from Sunday 08 May 2022.
This announcement was made, this afternoon, by the Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Mr Alan Ganoo, during a press conference held in Port Louis, on the review of bus and Light Rail fares.
The new bus fares will be as follows:
Stage 1: from Rs 12 to Rs 17
Stage 2: from Rs 18 to Rs 24
Stage 3 and 4: from Rs 24 to Rs 30
Stage 5 and 6: from Rs 27 to Rs 35
Stage 7-8: from Rs 30 to Rs 39
Stage 9-12: from Rs 31 to Rs 41
Stage 13-30: from Rs 34 to 44
Stage 31-39: from Rs 37 to Rs 47
The new Light Rail fares are as follows:
Stage 1: from Rs 20 to Rs 35
Stage 2: from 30 to Rs 40
Stage 3: from Rs 40 to Rs 45
Stage 4: Rs 50 (Phoenix)
Stage 5: Rs 55 (Curepipe)
He recalled that these increases were inevitable given soaring fuel prices, increase in operating costs of public transport as well as inflation.
He further highlighted that the Bus Company Recovery Account, a fund put in place by Government to support bus operators, has drastically depleted since the past few years.
According to him, if Government does not continue to support these transport operators, some will be forced to stop their operations which will lead to job losses which eventually will destabilise the transport system.
Furthermore, Minister Ganoo underlined that with the increase in bus and Light Rail fares, Government has decreased the subsidies given to operators by Rs 246 million.
He also dwelt on some measures which will soon be implemented in a bid to enhance the transport system. They include: the setting up of a mechanism where the Regulator will have control over all the buses, and the renewal of the bus fleet.
Minister Ganoo also spoke about the extension of the delay given for the implementation of licenses of rental cars/taxis so that operators of these vehicles can replace their license till 31 December 2022.
He said that those with tourist bus licenses will be allowed to vary their licenses so that they can carry employees till 31 December 2022. The delay for the replacement of contract car/bus will also be extended till 31 December 2022, he added.
He underlined that all these measures are being implemented in a bid to support transport operators especially in the context of COVID-19 which has impacted them.
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