Sales of advance train and bus tickets for the homebound passengers during the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr festival began on Friday.
Tickets for the trains in the country's western region were available online from 8:00 am, while tickets for the trains in the eastern region were available from 2:00 pm.
Sales of advance train tickets will continue for seven consecutive days until March 20, and all tickets will be sold online. This year, a total of 35,315 advance tickets will be sold daily for trains departing from Dhaka.
Tickets for March 24 were sold on Friday (March 14). Tickets for March 25 will be available on March 15, tickets for March 26 on March 16, tickets for March 27 on March 17, tickets for March 28 on March 18, tickets for March 29 on March 19, and tickets for March 30 on March 20. Additionally, tickets for March 31, April 1 and April 2 will be sold based on sighting of the moon.
Our Correspondent from Chattogram also reports that Bangladesh Railway (BR) began selling advance tickets from Chattogram station for the Eid-ul-Fitr on Friday.
Despite special measures to prevent black market ticket sales as well as to ensure orderly sales at the counters, many people were unable to secure tickets on Friday due to long queues formed overnight or in the early hours of the morning. Sources noted that all tickets were sold out within the first hour on Friday.
The BR authority has arranged special trains and additional carriages on every train to accommodate the rush of homebound passengers. The weekly holidays for all trains on the Dhaka-Chattogram route have been cancelled.
A bdnews24.com report adds, large crowds gathered at counters of the major bus operators from Friday morning to purchase advance tickets for their Eid trips. While some travellers reported slight overcharging on fares, most were happy to have received the tickets.
Staff at the counters mentioned that the Eid journeys will begin on March 25, coinciding with the Independence Day holiday. The week-long holiday ensured that no customers would return empty-handed from the counters, they opined.
Following visits to various bus counters in the capital's Shyamoli, Kalyanpur and Gabtoli in the capital, it was seen that only the major bus operators could attract crowds, whereas the small bus operators saw little to no rush.
Staff of the small operators said most of their tickets are sold online, except for a few passengers buying directly from the counters. They said the only way to sell off the remaining tickets would be by increasing the number of last-minute trips.
Hanif Enterprise General Manager Mosharraf Hossain said since the Eid holiday spans from six to seven days, they are able to provide tickets accordingly, and all their tickets are available online.
Shanto Rahman, a passenger heading to Naogaon, bought seven tickets. Although the fare to Naogaon previously had been Tk 680-700, it was increased to Tk 820 for Eid. However, he was happy to have secured the tickets.
Regarding the increased ticket price, Mosharraf said: "We are not charging more than the original ticket prices. Normally, we charge less than the BRTA-set rates. But during the Eid seasons, we charge the original rates."
Anisur Rahman, who bought a ticket to Rangpur for March 25, said the process was quick. "Tickets are available. I had to buy the ticket to Rangpur for Tk 860. Usually, the ticket costs Tk 750-800."
Explaining the fare calculation system, Shyamoli Paribahan's counterman Md Sohag said: "For those complaining about high fares, you might notice on their tickets that they will be getting off at a middle stoppage, but have purchased a ticket for a longer route. Many companies charge the full fare for the entire route during the Eid festivals."
"For example, if a bus is going to Panchagarh, and someone gets off at Rangpur, he will be charged the full fare to Panchagarh. On the other hand, if someone buys a ticket for a bus that goes to Rangpur, the fare will not change," he added.
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