In its bid to offer services on a par with its counterparts in other states, the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has introduced two brand new super deluxe buses with semi-sleeper facility at the Ernakulam depot here on Friday.

The Corporation has decided to operate them as interstate Ernakulam-Bangalore services at 3.20 pm every day.

A total of 50 newly-built super deluxe buses have been built by the KSRTC this fiscal. The buses are slowly replacing the old and worn- out express buses that were being operated as inter-state services from several depots for the past five years. Also, it plans to replace the 20 inter-state A/C buses which were not operational for the past few months owing to the expiry of their permits.

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According to Ernakulam ATO S Suresh Kumar, Ernakulam depot is expected to receive five more such buses. “We have been struggling to operate the Ernakulam-Bangalore services smoothly owing to the unavailability of proper buses. However, with the introduction of the two buses, we are hopeful of garnering the full patronage for the Ernakulam-Bangalore services and start smooth operation of the 3.20-pm service,” he said.

Currently in Kochi, the KSRTC operates only the 8-pm Ernakulam-Bangalore service smoothly. Recently, an Ernakulam-Bangalore Express bus was rerouted to Piravom as per the orders of Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob. This bus arrives at Ernakulam at 9.15 pm and operates towards Bangalore.

Sources with the KSRTC said that they will soon be approaching the Chief Office in Thiruvananthapuram for a change in timing of the bus services between Ernakulam and Bangalore. “The 3.20-pm service would be more useful if the timings are changed to either 5.30 pm or 6.00 pm. There is heavy rush at Ernakulam, Palakkad and Kozhikode between 4 pm to 6 pm. We are stuck in the traffic at these three cities anyway. So, if the bus leaves Ernakulam at either 5.30 pm or 6.00 pm, it could be more useful as it will generate more patronage as well as save time. The service can reach Bangalore at 5.30 am either way.

The KSRTC has decided to operate long-distance services using super deluxe buses. “This bus has pushback seats which provides the passenger the comfort of a semi-sleeper. Air suspension facility is yet another benefit. The Express buses have a seating capacity of 51, while the superdeluxe has only 39. However, comfort while travelling is what people seek,” union members said. Each bus costs `40 lakh. The Piravom-Ernakulam-Bangalore Express will be replaced by the new super deluxe service. The Ernakulam depot will get two new multi-axle AC buses also soon

New Indian Express

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