Kerala to launch free bus travel for women tomorrow

The UDF government in Kerala will roll out its free bus travel scheme for women from June 15, fulfilling one of its key Assembly election promises.

Announcing the decision on Thursday, Transport Minister CP John said women will be able to travel free of cost on all ordinary buses operated by the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) from Monday.

Chief Minister VD Satheesan will formally launch the scheme at the Thampanoor bus station in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday morning. The inaugural service will be operated entirely by women staff members.


The scheme will cover all 3,125 ordinary buses in the KSRTC fleet.

John said the initiative is expected to cost around ₹2 crore a day, with the expenditure to be borne by the state government as the KSRTC is not in a position to absorb the burden. The final financial outlay will be assessed after the scheme has been operational for at least a month.