KUALA LUMPUR(Malaysia): New bus rates will be announced before the fasting month starts next week.

Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development Minister Datuk Noh Omar said he would make the announcement after several matters had been ironed out with the government.

"I was told that a bus company could suffer losses of up to about RM100,000 a day," he said after launching a two-day conference for National Tekun officers yesterday.

Sources said express and stage bus companies would be allowed to impose a 30 per cent surcharge on fares from Sept 15. This is for a one-month period.

Sources said this was decided at a two-hour closed-door meeting between Noh and bus operators.

The surcharge was demanded by the operators before they agreed to put more buses on the road for the Hari Raya period.

Bus operators explained that they needed a "reasonable" increase because of festive costs. "When we put more buses on the road during the holidays, our drivers get triple salary," a source said.

On the 100 per cent fare price hike the operators are seeking, the source said Noh told them the quantum would be decided later.

The source said operators were agreeable to a smaller hike if the government offered other incentives. This could be in the form of higher fuel subsidies and lower taxes for the purchase of tyres, batteries and chassis.