Chennai: Tamil Nadu CM C Joseph Vijay announced on Monday that the existing free bus travel facility for women and transgender persons under the Vettri Payanam scheme would be extended from ordinary buses to all deluxe, express and limited-stop services in Chennai and other cities. Vijay announced in the Assembly under rule 110, and he said that the scheme will come into force on October 2^nd.

He said that the scheme will also cover ordinary mofussil and ghat services operated by the six TNSTCs across the State. The expansion will add 4,641 buses to the free travel scheme and is expected to benefit an additional 25 lakh women.

According to the official sources said the free scheme in ordinary buses currently benefits around 75 lakh women and transgender persons a day, and is expected to benefit an additional 25 lakh women daily, taking the total beneficiaries to 1 crore. This will also increase the State’s financial burden by around `1,600 crore, said officials. Consequently, the annual allocation for the free travel scheme is expected to rise from around `4,400 crore to `6,000 crore.

Under the Vidiyal Payanam scheme introduced by the previous DMK regime in May 2021, around 7,700 ordinary buses currently provide free travel to women and transgender persons. Following the expansion, the number of buses covered under the scheme will increase to 12,341. The eight state transport corporations have a combined fleet strength of around 21,500 buses.

In Chennai, the expansion will allow women to travel free on 400 non-AC electric buses currently operated under the GCC model, along with another 500 e-buses to be introduced soon.

CM Vijay said there would be no income ceiling or restriction on the number of journeys for beneficiaries and said the scheme would be extended to more services in the future. The scheme will make public transport affordable and accessible to women across the State. It will enable students to travel to colleges located far from their homes, help women commute to workplaces and allow them to access medical care and attend to other emergencies without worrying about travel expenses, he added.

He further said the ‘Vettri Payanam’ scheme is not merely a ticketless bus travel initiative, but a social investment that supports a student’s education, a worker’s livelihood, a mother’s family responsibilities and an entrepreneur’s progress.