A.P. State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) Vice-Chairman and Managing Director R.P. Thakur on Thursday directed the officials to rework on the schedules of bus operations based on the dwindling number of people opting for public transport in view of the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr. Thakur reviewed the issues arising out of the spurt in positive cases, and directed the officials to alter the operation schedules with focus on key issues such as cost of operation and occupancy ratio.
In case of cancellation of a bus service, or merger of two routes, the customers should be informed about the change through phone calls, Mr. Thakur said.
Inter-State services
He said inter-State bus operations to Hyderabad, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Odisha would continue as per norms.
He also said that the arrears due for payment to the retired employees would be paid on April 27 and 30.
Mr. Thakur asked the Regional Managers and Depot Managers to ensure that their respective offices and bus stands strictly followed the COVID protocols. “Ensure that people wear masks, maintain physical distance, and maintain hand-washing hygiene,” he said.
Vaccination
They should also ensure that the officers and staff aged above 45 were administered the vaccine, he said. They should also inform them about the government’s decision to inoculate all people aged above 18 from May 1.
The Regional Managers should monitor the process of vaccination to the staff and distribute double-layered masks to all the employees. Mr. Thakur said the bus crew should ensure COVID-appropriate behaviour of the commuters. Employees who had contracted the virus would be granted 14 days special casual leave for the quarantine period, he added.
Mr. Thakur also directed the officials to focus on revenue-generating models such as identifying RTC properties that could be leashed for construction of petrol pumps.
APSRTC in-charge Executive Director (Administration) P. Krishna Mohan, Chief Finance Manager Sudhakar, Chief Traffic Manager Chandra Sekhar, Chief Personnel Manager (In-charge) D. Samrajyam, and Deputy Chief Traffic Manager Usha Rani were present.
