Poor patronage has hit Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC)’s inter-State services to Karnataka and back that began on Tuesday to clear the rush during the forthcoming Onam festival season.
The non-air-conditioned Superclass buses that operated from Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, and Kozhikode to Bengalaru were full. The occupancy was 50% on the buses from Pathanamthitta and Kottayam. On the bus that commenced inter-State journey at 3 p.m. from Thiruvananthapuram, all the 39 seats were full.
Although it was decided to commence services from Thiruvananthapuram, Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Kannur, Kozhikode, and Kasaragod to Bengaluru and back till September 9, poor patronage has forced authorities to cancel services from Palakkad, Kannur, and Kasaragod.
No demand
“The advance bookings are there for the initial days. In the Bengaluru-Kerala sector, there is no demand for seats and the operation of services needs to be looked into,” a top KSRTC official of operations wing said.
The inter-State service will be using the Super Class buses for the first time since the pandemic-induced lockdown in March. Lack of confidence among the public to use public transport; spurt in COVID-19 cases; and the lockdown not being fully lifted are cited as the main reasons for poor patronage.
Commuters will have to pay 10% more than the regular inter-State bus fare, which will be levied on an end-to-end basis. With Onam just six days away, the KSRTC authorities do not see a change in the pattern of passenger flow to Kerala from Bengalaru and back.
However, the KSRTC has decided to operate inter-State service from Thiruvananthapuram to Chennai via Ernakulam on August 27 to clear the rush during the Onam season. The return journey will be on August 28 from Chennai to Thiruvananthapuram via Ernakulam.
