Advance bus ticket sale begins today

Sale of advance bus tickets for home-goers ahead of the major two religious festivals -- Eid-ul-Azha and Sharadia Durga Puja -- will begin today (Monday).

The Bangladesh Bus Truck Owners Association (BBTOA), which maintains vehicles of 30 districts, has decided to sell advance tickets much earlier this year to avoid the hassle of mad rush of people.

The ticket sale will begin today from 5:30 am from the ticket counters of Gabtoli, Mazar Road, Shyamoli, Kalyanpur, College Gate, Fakirapool and Malibagh in the city.

"The decision of selling tickets was taken Saturday night at a meeting of the bus owners," President of BBTOA Faruque Talukder told the FE.

He said the bus operators are going to face heavy rush as the official vacation for Eid and Puja has fallen almost at the same time.

When asked he said: "The fare of bus for Rangpur, Rajshahi and Khulna divisions will remain the same as on normal days".    

"We've fixed ticket prices following the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) chart," said Mr Talukder, also Managing Director of Shohag Paribahan, a leading private bus operator.

He also informed that a few bus operators of Chittagong region will also begin advance ticket sale from today.  

Manager of the Northern region based Nabil Paribahan Md Shafiq Ahmed said it will be difficult to manage the mad rush of ticket seekers ahead of the festivals.