"hi tech buses Kochi"

"hi tech buses Kochi"

Courtesy - ksrtcblog.com

The Hi tech Volvo buses plying in the city means more than one thing to the daily commuters. It is a new beginning, which also puts an end to many things. To begin with, these low-floor beauties are luxurious and offer a plush journey. Since the buses are air-conditioned, the travellers have a pleasant ride to places of work or education without getting all sweaty, stinky, your neatly ironed clothes full of creases, and your hair completely out of place There is nothing like getting to your destination looking and smelling fresh, isn’t it? Now this is no more a prerogative to the ones who own cars. So there you have a luxury of choice! You can take a private bus or check out the Volvo. The call is yours.

Now that the KSRTC has decided to roll out more buses, things have got even better. You have more buses to chose from. More buses on the road per route would naturally translate into lesser passengers per bus. So that is like bidding good bye to bus journeys that squeeze the life out of you. Iam hoping that this would mean that the commuters no longer have to stand on the door steps, dump your bags on the laps or heads of the seated passengers, step on each others’ toes or balance yourself on one feet like a seasoned yogi. If you cannot sit, I’m hoping that you can probably balance yourself on both the feet and breathe in peace.

An end to the monopoly! The Volvo buses have come as a sigh of relief for the daily commuters. No more being at the mercy of private buses and their immediate and “surprise” strikes. A news story on a sudden bus strike in the day’s news paper may not dampen the plans of some. But it makes life difficult for the common man. People who cannot afford private vehicles, women and children largely rely on the private buses for their daily transportation to work places or educational institutions. A bus strike would spell trouble for them. Among other things, amateur drivers get on to the roads with their two-wheelers or four-wheelers and cause havoc on the roads. Smart City, the container terminal at Vallarpadom, IPL team, metro rail, WTC and Volvo buses, Cochin is definitely galloping forward!

KSRTC premium bus services at loss – Kochi | Cochin

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The premium buses aimed at increasing the revenue of the KSRTC have proved to be doing just the opposite , they are now running at  huge losses . Inadequate passenger patronage and the escalating dissonance between the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and the civic agencies in Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram have resulted in the 15 Volvo buses operating in the two cities incurring losses.

The buses with automatic transmission, each of which costs Rs. 80 lakh, need an income of Rs.50 per km to operate on a no-profit no-loss basis. The average income in Kochi is Rs.36 per km, while that in Thiruvananthapuram is Rs.28 per km. In January first week, the seven buses plying in Kochi earned an average of Rs.40 per km, while those in the State capital got Rs.35 per km.

At present, the four buses on the Aroor-Angamaly route fetch Rs.38 per km, while the two on the Fort Kochi-International Airport route earn Rs.35 per km. The total earnings from the six buses fell from Rs.81,930 on January 2 to Rs.78,090 on Thursday. Each 40-seater bus runs an average of 330 km a day and records an average occupancy of 55 per cent, down from 60 per cent a fortnight ago.

The earning is down to Rs.11,880 a bus, down from Rs.13,000 a fortnight ago. The cost of operating a km in Kochi is lower than in Thiruvananthapuram because many roads in the capital have been dug up for laying water pipelines. The buses plying in Kochi have a mileage of 2.50 km per litre of diesel, while it is 2.25 kmpl in the capital city.

Due to lack in Parking facilities ?

KSRTC MD T.P. Senkumar said that passenger patronage would increase only if the Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram Corporations readied pay-and-park facilities for cars and two-wheelers near bus stops, and provided better shelters for commuters awaiting the buses. Referring to the two Corporations demanding a stake in running the Volvo-bus fleet, he said that the respective RTC’s in other States own and operate premium buses purchased under the JNNURM scheme.

In the case of Kochi, KSRTC will spend Rs.72 crore on the total of 50 Volvo, 120 non-AC low-floor and 30 mini buses under the scheme. The Kochi Corporation has not committed any of its funds for the project. If the civic agencies cannot provide better amenities to commuters, let them run the services using their workers.

Wooing passengers

The schedules in the capital will be modified in a week, to attract more passengers. In Kochi, the KSRTC plans to market the premium buses by installing boards that mention the stops and timings of the buses, at prominent locales. It might also increase the number of stops. Three weeks since it began operating in Kochi, many people do not know that they can travel in air-conditioned comfort up to 5 km, by paying the minimum fare of Rs.10.

Earmarking pay-and-park centres will take time. Since the buses ply mostly along the highway (except in West Kochi), the KSRTC must take up the issue of bus shelters with the PWD and the NHAI. The RTC must give publicity to its bus stops and timings and reassure people about the promptness of the services, to make the services more effective.

Clearly , we are a city that has a lot of people who are ready to pay the cost whatsoever in travelling in such buses. So park you expensive vehicles at home, and start traveling in these uber comfortable buses at very economical prices.  That way , we are also finding a solution to the traffic issues, one that Cochin is very famous for.

And as for those people who are still questioning the routes the buses ply on , the RTC is looking into the matter , and hopefully will come up with smart decisions .