Road Transport and Bridges Minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam on Wednesday announced that a final decision regarding new fares for transport, including buses and trucks, will be taken on Thursday.
The minister shared this information while speaking to reporters at the Secretariat on Wednesday following a meeting held to determine new bus fares in light of rising fuel prices.
He noted that while the new rates were not finalised during Wednesday’s session, a definitive decision would be reached the following day.
The move to restructure fares follows a sharp increase in fuel prices announced by the Energy and Mineral Resources Division on Saturday night, which came into effect on Sunday.
Under the new pricing, diesel has risen from Tk100 to Tk115 per litre (a Tk15 increase), while octane rose by Tk20 to Tk140. Petrol prices increased from Tk116 to Tk135, and kerosene rose from Tk112 to Tk130 per litre.
The Bangladesh Road Transport Owners’ Association has highlighted that the sector is currently facing mounting financial pressure. In addition to the Tk15 hike in diesel prices, the association pointed to the rising costs of imported spare parts and overall vehicle maintenance driven by the increased value of the dollar.
Transport leaders have called upon the government to quickly and rationally re-fix fares in alignment with fuel and maintenance costs to maintain stability in the sector.
Previously, a meeting was held on Sunday night at the BRTA office in Banani involving BRTA officials and leaders of transport owner and worker organisations. Following that session, the BRTA Chairman informed the media that a draft proposal had been prepared and that the Ministry would soon finalise the specific amount of the fare increase.
