Chennai, 02 Oct (H.S.):Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Friday launched the expanded Vetri Payanam free bus travel scheme for women at Chennai’s Koyambedu bus terminus, extending the benefit to additional categories of government buses across the State.

The launch coincided with Gandhi Jayanti. Before inaugurating the expanded programme, Vijay paid floral tributes to a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi at the venue.

The Chief Minister then boarded a government bus operating between Chennai and Kancheepuram, distributed free tickets to women passengers and greeted them, marking the formal commencement of the expanded scheme.

Under the programme, women can travel without paying fares on 12,692 government buses. The expanded coverage includes Express, LSS and Deluxe services operating in metropolitan and urban areas, suburban ordinary buses and ordinary services covering distances exceeding 40 kilometres in hill regions.

The expansion brings more categories of public transport within the free travel programme, providing women with a wider choice of services for their journeys.

According to the figures announced for the scheme, an estimated 84.32 lakh women passengers are expected to benefit every day. The programme is intended to improve access to affordable public transport for women throughout Tamil Nadu.

By extending the concession to suburban ordinary services and specified hill routes, the government has widened its reach beyond metropolitan and urban bus networks.

For women using the newly covered services, the expansion removes the fare component of their journeys. The concession applies to the routes and categories of government buses covered by the programme.

The launch highlighted the expanded coverage, with Vijay handing tickets directly to passengers on the Chennai–Kancheepuram service.

The initiative places additional government bus services within the free travel framework, making public transport more accessible to women and broadening the availability of fare-free journeys across urban, suburban and eligible hill routes.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman