News

Coimbatore Rolls Out Expanded Free Bus Travel for Women; 4 Lakh to Benefit from 790 Buses

SimpliCity News Team · 22 days ago

Coimbatore: A new journey towards easier and more affordable public transport for women began in Coimbatore on Gandhi Jayanti, with the expanded ‘Vetri Payanam’ scheme coming into effect across the district from October 2.

The expanded scheme, which allows women to travel beyond ordinary city and town buses, was launched by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay in Chennai on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti.

Initially, the free travel scheme for women was introduced by the previous DMK government as ‘Magalir Vidiyal Payanam’, covering eligible ordinary government buses. Now, with the expansion under ‘Vetri Payanam’, the range of government bus services available for free travel has been widened across Tamil Nadu.

In Coimbatore district, the launch was held at the Gandhipuram Central Bus Stand, where the new services were flagged off in the presence of ministers Sampath Kumar and Vignesh, Coimbatore District Collector, elected representatives and senior officials of the State Transport Department.

The scheme has been extended to 790 government buses, covering urban, mofussil and hill-route services. In the city, the existing 437 buses covered under the women’s free travel scheme have been joined by another 165 buses, taking the total number of buses covered in urban areas to 602, according to officials of the Coimbatore division.

The expansion is expected to significantly increase the number of women benefiting from the scheme in the district. Officials estimate that around 4 lakh women could benefit every day in Coimbatore, compared with approximately 3.25 lakh beneficiaries under the earlier arrangement.

Across Tamil Nadu, 12,692 government buses operated by the seven State Transport Undertakings have been brought under the expanded ‘Vetri Payanam’ scheme. This represents about 69 per cent of the 18,413 scheduled buses operated by the transport corporations, while around 1.65 lakh scheduled single trips will come under the scheme.

The State government estimates that around 84.32 lakh women will benefit from the expanded scheme every day. There is no income ceiling or restriction on the number of journeys for eligible beneficiaries, while transgender persons are also covered. The government has allocated around Rs 6,000 crore annually for the programme.

The scheme now covers Express, Limited Stop Service (LSS), and Deluxe government buses in urban and metropolitan areas, plus mofussil and hill-route services (expanding past just ordinary city buses) widening the scope for longer-distance travel. Women can use eligible services and change buses at different points to continue their journeys, depending on the availability of buses covered under the programme. Routes connecting major towns and cities, including Coimbatore-Erode and Erode-Salem, are among those expected to benefit from the expanded coverage.

The government has also completed the integration of the covered buses with Electronic Ticketing Machines (ETMs) ahead of the statewide rollout.

Vetri Payanam Coimbatore women free bus travel Tamil Nadu government scheme Gandhipuram C Joseph Vijay public transport Gandhi Jayanti

Coimbatore Rolls Out Expanded Free Bus Travel for Women; 4 Lakh to Benefit from 790 Buses

Related stories