Peenya bus services help KSRTC save 250 litres of diesel per day

The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation is saving at least 250 litres of diesel a day by shifting 60 bus services from the Majestic to the Basaveshwara terminal in Peenya. The running time of the buses has improved, too.

In April, the KSRTC took the first step to reducing congestion in the city centre by shifting the services out of the Kempegowda bus station, although a similar move in 2014 had caused it a loss of about Rs 12 crore. The 60 schedules include services to Tumakuru, Hassan, Raichur, Koppal and Mangaluru.

"Only Karnataka Sarige buses operate out of Peenya. The running time of each bus has been cut by an hour to 1.30 hours as it doesn't get stuck in traffic from Majestic to Peenya," a senior KSRTC official said. "We are saving four litres of diesel on every trip."

But the corporation is still suffering losses, according to its managing director S R Umashankar. "The buses from Peenya are not running to their optimum levels, causing a dip in the revenue. But we are looking at the larger benefits of saving fuel and reducing congestion," he added.

Umashankar also welcomed the transport department's notification, mandating that private buses run on flyovers. "Buses from Peenya are seeing better ridership following that order. If the passenger demand goes up, we will ply more buses," he said.

An official in the transport department said the reduction in traffic congestion would be difficult to measure, considering the low number of buses. "Removing just one bus will contribute to clearing the road, but its contribution will be intangible. If the new government goes ahead with the plan to shift all private buses from Majestic to Peenya, people will get some relief," he added.

The government, however, must take steps to ensure passengers can travel from the main road to the Peenya terminal without any hassle. The BMRCL plans to build a walkalator in a public-private partnership to connect the terminal to the Peenya metro station, but the project is yet to take off.