UP free bus travel scheme: Number of passengers expected to hit 75 lakh by midnight on Sunday

The number of bus passengers is expected to hit 75 lakh by midnight on Sunday following the Uttar Pradesh government's free bus travel scheme for women on Raksha Bandhan.

According to the Uttar Pradesh State Roadways Transport Corporation (UPSRTC), up to 70 per cent of the total passengers are expected to be availing the government's free travel initiative, the UP government said in a statement on Sunday.

The Yogi Adityanath government has offered free travel to women in the state on Raksha Bandhan on UPSRTC buses from August 8 to 10. This facility is also being provided to a single co-traveller accompanying the woman.


UPSRTC MD Masoom Ali Sarwar said the buses usually carry 14 to15 lakh passengers every day, but in just the first two days of Raksha Bandhan, the numbers surged past 50 lakh. The 66-hour free travel 'Samman Ka Tohfa' offered by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during Raksha Bandhan started at 6 am on August 8.

On August 8, 19.5 lakh passengers availed the free service, while 31.7 lakh passengers travelled on August 9, suggesting a spike of 210 per cent than the normal. By 12.50 pm on August 10, 13 lakh passengers had already travelled, and by midnight, this number is estimated to reach 25 lakh.

At major bus stations like Ghaziabad, Moradabad, Meerut, Bareilly, Lucknow, Saharanpur, Agra, Aligarh, Kanpur, and Etawah, special duty staff were deployed due to the large number of passengers.

He also said that an incentive scheme for drivers and conductors has been implemented.

Meanwhile, lakhs of women in the state who benefited from this facility thanked Chief Minister Adityanath for this "gift".

Sandhya, traveling from Jhansi bus depot, said that the Yogi Adityanath government has taken a good step, making women feel positive.

At Moradabad bus depot, Jeetu said this initiative is benefiting millions of women and thanked the chief minister. PTI