Thaindian News

Bangalore, Aug 28 (IANS) After air-conditioned Volvo and Tata-Marcopolo buses, commuters in Bangalore will now get Mercedes-Benz buses to make their city rides comfortable.
Two AC Mercedes-Benz buses were introduced on an experimental basis Saturday with a flat fare of Rs.5 for the first three days. They will ply on various routes till Sep 11 to gauge commuters’ response.

“If the response is encouraging, we will introduce 10 such buses in October,” Transport Minister R. Ashok said after flagging off the two buses from Shantinagar bus stand in the central business district.

The A/C Volvo and Tata-Marcopolo buses, whose fare is more than twice the ordinary buses, have received overwhelming response from Bangalore commuters. During peak morning and evening hours, people do not mind standing and commuting in these buses as they offer smooth journey.

“We plan to introduce Benz buses for intra-state and inter-state travel also,” said Ashok.

Besides offering comfortable city ride to those who have been using buses, the introduction of these plush services is to induce private vehicle owners also to switch to public transport.

“Introduction of Volvo and Tata-Marcopolo buses has won over only a miniscule section of private vehicle owners to public transport,” a senior official of the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation acknowledged.

“We hope that deployment of Benz and plans to introduce more Volvo and Tata-Marcopolo buses will bring about a substantial change in the attitude of private vehicle users, given the increasing traffic snarls in the city,” he told IANS.

To encourage people to take to public transport, the BMTC has been organising a “bus day” every month since February this year. “The response is below our expectation but we are determined to continue this campaign,” he said.

With nearly four million private vehicles and around 1,000 more being added daily, most city roads are choc-a-bloc through the day.