The revised fares were officially announced today by the National Transport Commission (NTC) in a special notice, following the recent Cabinet approval.
Accordingly, bus fares have been revised, with the minimum bus fare increasing to Rs. 34, effective from midnight on July 6, 2026.
The NTC stated that stern legal action will be taken against any operator found charging fares in excess of the approved rates.
The fare revision was approved by the Cabinet of Ministers at its meeting held on June 30, 2026, as an interim measure until a national transport fares policy is formulated.
According to the NTC, the revision has been made in line with the National Bus Fares Policy approved by the Cabinet of Ministers in 2002, under which annual bus fare revisions are implemented based on a cost index that takes into account changes in 12 key cost factors.
These factors include fuel costs, repair and maintenance expenses, employee-related costs, tyre and tube expenses, capital interest costs, and other daily, monthly and annual overhead expenses.
The Commission stated that the 2026 fare revision was determined after updating the existing fare formula and cost factors to reflect current conditions, while also taking into consideration the reduction of Rs. 25 per litre in the price of Lanka Auto Diesel by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, which came into effect on June 30, 2026.
Accordingly, the following fare revisions will be implemented:
• Normal bus services operating on routes of less than 100 kilometres will see a 12 per cent fare increase.
• Normal bus services operating on routes of 100 kilometres and above will be subject to a 20 per cent fare increase following adjustments to the fare structure.
• Luxury bus services operating on routes of less than 100 kilometres will also receive a 12 per cent fare increase.
• Luxury bus services operating on routes of 100 kilometres and above will be subject to a 15 per cent fare increase following revisions to the fare structure.
• As a case relating to semi-luxury bus fares is currently pending before the Court of Appeal, fares for semi-luxury services will continue to be calculated at 1.5 times the revised normal bus fare.
The Commission further announced that, with the implementation of the revised fare structure, super-luxury bus services operating on expressways and normal highway bus services will charge fares in accordance with the revised luxury bus fare structure.
The complete fare tables for normal, semi-luxury, luxury and all inter-provincial bus services, effective from July 6, 2026, have been released by the National Transport Commission and are attached below.
The revised fares are also available on the official website of the National Transport Commission.
The NTC has instructed the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) and all private bus operators providing inter-provincial and intra-provincial passenger transport services to charge only the approved fares.
The Commission warned that legal action will be taken against operators found charging fares in excess of the approved rates.
Passengers who are overcharged are requested to lodge complaints with the National Transport Commission via its hotline 1955 or through WhatsApp on 071 259 5555.
