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KSRTC to open two more depots

Wednesday, 19 August 2009 04:59 administrator
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The Hindu - Karnataka 19.08.2009

KSRTC to open two more depots

Raviprasad Kamila

Mangalore division is planning to start operating 37 routes in the city

— Photo: R. Eswarraj

NEW FACILITY: Construction of a KSRTC depot at Kunitkana in Mangalore is under way.

MANGALORE: Mangalore Division of Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) will have two more depots shortly, one in the city, and another at B.C. Road. These depots will serve as “backbone” of the KSRTC for operating its proposed city buses here. Now it has two depots in the city handling 310 schedules (buses) a day, according to sources.

Sources in the KSRTC told The Hindu that when its two new depots were commissioned, the division could make necessary changes to distribute its schedules, including the proposed city bus schedules, among the four depots. In addition, it could introduce new routes in rural areas and other destinations, they said.

However, the KSRTC is awaiting the approval of the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) of Dakshina Kannada to operate 37 city bus schedules.

Officials in the division said they were confident of operating city buses after a month of obtaining the permission from the RTA.

Sources said that a new depot at B.C. Road, which is at 30 km distance from the city, would be ready by next month-end.

It would be commissioned in October. The depot, spread on a four-acre plot, could handle 150 buses or schedules a day. The division was contemplating on operating 60 schedules from the B.C. Road depot, initially.

The KSRTC was building another depot near Kuntikana here on a 3.5-acre land. This depot would be commissioned either in the last week of November or first week of December. It could handle 100 schedules (buses) a day, sources said.

A senior official in the division said that there was no need to call fresh applications to recruit drivers or conductors for operating city buses. A list of eligible candidates for those posts was ready with the division. The list had been prepared based on applications it had received earlier. Hence there was no need to obtain fresh approval from the State Finance Department to recruit personnel for the required posts, they said.

The official said that the KSRTC would have no problem in getting fleet for city bus service.

Bus stand

Sources said that the division would construct a new bus stand at B.C. Road. The Government had allotted the required land for a depot at Sullia. It had plans to construct a depot at Kukke Subrahmanya, they said.

Volvo buses

The division was planning to introduce new Volvo buses (routes) to Puttaparti, Mantralaya, and Hyderabad, sources said.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 19 August 2009 05:01
 

BMTC to get 1,000 more buses this year

Wednesday, 19 August 2009 04:49 administrator
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The Hindu - Karnataka 19.08.2009

BMTC to get 1,000 more buses this year

Special Correspondent

Ashok says 165 of them will be inducted on August 31

 

Centre urged to extend JNNURM facility to

Hubli and Belgaum

BMTC has posted a profit of Rs. 50 crore

BANGALORE: The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation will have an additional fleet of 1,000 new buses this year under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) with a view to improving the transport services to the working class, poor and middle class commuters in the city, Transport Minister R. Ashok said on Tuesday.

He told presspersons that of the 1,000 buses, 165 had arrived and they would be deployed from August 31. Of the Rs. 283-crore being spent for the new fleet, 30 per cent would come from the JNNURM programme and the State Government would fund 15 per cent of the cost and the balance would be met by the BMTC.

The Minister said that buses from companies such as Tata and Ashok Leyland had completed trial runs in the city. The fleet would include 150 Volvo buses. All the 1,000 buses would be in service by December this year. Under the Atal Saarige meant for poor people, 25 buses more would be added shortly. Mysore will also get 150 buses under the JNNURM.

Mr. Ashok said that the North West Karnataka Road Transport Corporation and the North East Karnataka Road Transport Corporation would also get 1,000 buses each, but the buses would be purchased, depending upon the availability of funds. These buses will cost Rs. 14 lakh each, while the cost of a Volvo bus is Rs. 60 lakh.

He said that the State Government had asked the Union Government to extend the JNNURM facility to Hubli and Belgaum cities similar to the addition of five cities in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. The Minister said that NWKRTC , NEWKRTC and BMTC had made a profit of Rs. 200 crore, Rs. 12 crore and Rs. 50 crore respectively.

Asked why the profit of the BMTC had come down to Rs. 50 crore from Rs. 300 crore, the Minister said that a large chunk of it had been used for purchasing 250 acres of land, including 176 acres for various projects on the outer ring road. A part of the profit had been earmarked for the hi-tech bus stand in the city.

The Minister said that the motor vehicle inspectors, who were working in the same place for over three years and allegedly indulging in corrupt practices using strategic check-posts across the State would be transferred next year and the process would be started this year itself.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 19 August 2009 04:50
 

GPS-enabled green autos

Tuesday, 18 August 2009 08:35 administrator
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The New Indian Express 18.08.2009

GPS-enabled green autos

Ashwini M Sripad


BANGALORE: Bangalore rikshaw-wallahs have never hesitated of refusing passengers.

But now, passengers can hope to have to last laugh. If the green autorickshaw proposal gets going, then there will not only be more rickshaws on the road, they will also be nonpolluting.

There are more than 80,000 autorickshaws in Bangalore. The Transport Department has proposed that 1,000 GPS-enabled green autos be added to this fleet.

Adarsha auto-drivers union president, Manjunath, said that the transport department has placed the proposal before the Cabinet but the final word is no t out yet.

Manjunath said that these vehicles will be painted green and yellow to distinguish them from the other autos. The green auto drivers will wear navy blue trousers and light blue shirts.

Manjunath said that green autos will have a small LCD screen just behind the driver’s seat. “One can display ads similar to the ones in BMTC Volvo buses,” he said. Drivers will also get a health insurance of Rs 5 lakh.

There will be one main call-centre and four sub-centres at the south, north, east and west regions. “Passengers can call the call-centre, which in turn will alert the sub-centre concerned so that autos can be sent to the caller’s home,” he added.

Bangalore Auto Drivers Co-operative Society Limited president, Somashekar, said that green auto drivers will be required to have a minimum educational qualification of having passed eight standard.

For auto drivers

The society will help the interested buy an auto, with that they can become driver-cum-owner of the auto.

However, the permit will be controlled by the society. “If we come to know that driver misbehaved, we will warn him and further permit can be cancelled,” he said. These drivers will also be getting behaviourial training.

Somashekar said that these autos will not just have electronic fare meter, but a print out of the bill can be taken, which will have details like distance travelled, from where to where and time taken. The printed bill will also have contact number of the driver, in case, customers left their luggage, they can contact him back.

These vehicles will also have a wireless walkie talkie connection. “Once the centre gets call from the customer, drivers are informed about the location through this,” he said

Last Updated on Tuesday, 18 August 2009 08:42
 
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