Bangladesh raises diesel bus and minibus fares with 2.70 taka ceiling

The government has re-fixed the maximum fares of diesel-run buses and minibuses, lifting the rate for buses in the Dhaka and Chattogram metropolitan areas from 2.53 to 2.70 taka per kilometre per passenger. The order was issued under section 34(2) of the Road Transport Act 2018, citing the rise in diesel prices and current operating costs, and was published in the Bangladesh Gazette of 29 October 2026 as notification No. 35.00.0000.020.26.005.16-540. The new rates took effect on 22 September 2026.

The notification, dated 22 September 2026 (7 Ashwin 1433) and issued by order of the President, comes from the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges through its Road Transport and Highways Division. It replaces the ceilings fixed by the division’s earlier notification of 23 April 2026, which had set the three passenger-rate categories now revised upwards. The document states that the revision was made “in the public interest” and revokes all previous notifications and orders issued under rule 2(L) of the 2018 rules on fixing fares for diesel-powered buses and minibuses.

Three route categories, three new ceilings

The maximum fare per passenger per kilometre is now fixed as follows:

• Buses operating within the Dhaka and Chattogram metropolitan areas: 2.70 taka, up from 2.53 taka (a rise of about 6.7 percent).
• Buses and minibuses on inter-district and long-route services: 2.40 taka, up from 2.23 taka (about 7.6 percent).
• Minibuses in Dhaka and Chattogram, and buses and minibuses running inside the districts covered by the Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA): 2.60 taka, up from 2.43 taka (about 7 percent).

The DTCA districts named in the order are Narayanganj, Munshiganj, Narsingdi, Gazipur, Manikganj and Dhaka.

Minimum fares, gas-powered vehicles and display duty

In the two metropolitan areas the order also fixes minimum fares, set at 10.00 taka for buses and 8.00 taka for minibuses. The new tariff applies only to diesel-powered vehicles: the notification states explicitly that the rates will not apply to gas-run buses or minibuses.

Every bus and minibus must display the approved fare visibly inside the vehicle, according to the order. It adds that where the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) approves a reduction in the number of seats to make travel more comfortable, and the seating layout is rearranged, the fare must be re-fixed proportionally. In such cases the route-permit authority — the BRTA — or the Passenger and Goods Transport Committee must approve the proportional rate.

Timing and legal footing

The fare revision rests on section 34(2) of the Road Transport Act 2018, the provision that empowers the government to fix maximum fares for road transport. Although published in the gazette of 29 October 2026, the order is operative from 22 September 2026, the date of its issue, so operators have been bound by the higher ceilings for more than five weeks.

The notification was signed, by order of the President, by a secretary of the division; the same gazette page carries a separate disciplinary order of the Road Transport and Highways Division dated 28 September 2026.

The change lands directly on millions of daily commuters who rely on buses and minibuses, and on every diesel-fleet operator whose revenue per kilometre now rises while the mandatory display and seat-rearrangement clauses give passengers and regulators a clear basis for checking what they are charged.

Source: Bangladesh Gazette, No. 44 of 2026, 29 October 2026, Part I, pp. 1007–1008 (official reference: 35.00.0000.020.26.005.16-540).