Bus firms defend proposed fare hikes

Hong Kong’s franchised bus operators on Thursday defended their decisions to apply for fare hikes of up to 9.5 percent, as a Legco panel on transport is set to look into the applications tomorrow.

KMB and New Lantao Bus want to raise fares by 6.5 percent, while Citybus is seeking an increase of nearly 9.5 percent for most routes.

Andy Tsang On-tik, Senior Corporate Communications and Marketing Manager with Citybus, told a radio program this morning that the application came due to rising fuel and wage costs, with the firm’s last fare adjustment being over a year ago.

Should the proposed fare hike be approved, the new fares are expected to take effect in the first quarter of next year, more than a year and a half since the last fare adjustment, said Tsang.

He said the firm has faced losses over the past six years, with a loss of over HK$50 million last year, despite narrowing down the losses. He also noted that the firm has to consider ways to make up for this deficit from ticketing.

When asked about the need for annual fare adjustments, Tsang said wage costs are a major factor, accounting for 60 percent of the total costs.

“Employees expect annual wage increases, and if wages are not competitive, it may be challenging to recruit enough staff, leading to issues like longer wait time for bus services,” he said.

The Citybus official also rejected claims that the proposed fare hike was excessively high, noting that the application was the fourth since 2009, with no fare adjustments between 2009 to 2018.

Speaking on the same program, Kenny Kan Hok-hei, Head of Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Department at KMB explained that the proposed fare hike has taken into account operational conditions and changes in passenger numbers.

He noted that employee and fuel costs have risen, and KMB's passenger numbers have only recovered to around 90 percent compared to pre-pandemic levels.

This current fare increase application is lower than the two previous ones, said Kan, adding that the government would consider the public's affordability and might utilize the “Franchised Bus Toll Exemption Funds” to alleviate some of the fare increase.

He trusts that the government will make use of relevant mechanisms to ensure that passengers bear a reasonable share of the adjustment.