Overloading and other blatant violations of various regulations have become a routine feature of public transport in Dehradun. Inspite of the problems being faced by the commuters due to this, the authorities have remained apathetic to the violations.
Bus operators carry more than the maximum capacity of passengers who also face rude behaviour of the bus conductors. To add to their income, transporters generally try to adjust as many passengers into their vehicle as possible ignoring the maximum capacity which creates problems for the passengers.
Generally, the city buses are seen carrying 60 passengers in the 32 seater buses. The Vikram operators overload their vehicles too. Basically, seven and eight seater Vikrams are functional in the city. The maximum capacity of these tempos includes the driver. According to the Regional Transport Officer, Dinesh Chandra Pathoi, the bus operators are allowed to adjust 50 percent extra passengers (standing) than their maximum capacity.
This means about 20 extra passengers are allowed in the 32 seater buses. But the bus drivers carry more than the maximum limit of passengers. The officials of the RTO informed that a penalty of Rs 500 per passenger is imposed on the bus drivers found overloading while Rs 250 penalty per passenger along with a tax of Rs 2,200 is imposed on the Vikram drivers.
If the Vikram drivers repeat their offence their driving permit might also be cancelled, claimed the RTO officials. According to the RTO, they have a target of handing out as many as 500 challans per month and they keep conducting checking drive on regular basis. However, observers point out that evidently the penalties being imposed by the RTO have not had the desired effect. The authorities have not even been able to implement other regulations like ensuring that the bus driver and conductors wear uniforms and provide tickets to commuters.