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Vettri Payanam expands free bus travel for women

· Chennai

Vettri Payanam expands free bus travel for women
Prime Minister's Office, GODL-India · Wikimedia Commons

Free bus travel for women was widened by the Vijay government to express and deluxe services, without any income ceiling or cap on journeys.

Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay inaugurated the enlarged 'Vettri Payanam' scheme of free bus travel for women on Gandhi Jayanti, 2 October 2026. Free rides, available since 2021 only in ordinary town buses, now extended to other services, deluxe and express categories among them. Seven state transport corporations run the 12,695 buses covered, and some 84.32 lakh women are expected to use the scheme every day. There is no cap on the number of trips and no income ceiling. The title, which means 'victorious journey', comes from the name of the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam.

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