Commuters demand Vayu Vajra buses at railway stations

Nischith N | NT

Bengaluru: In a bid to ensure last mile connectivity, commuters are demanding dedicated, high-end Vayu Vajra bus services to and from railway stations Kengeri, Jnanabharathi, Cantonment and many more.

Commuters want BMTC to sync its operations with the train timings, provide information on the estimated arrival time of buses and ensure dedicated services for train passengers. They have even planned to submit an online petition on requesting Start dedicated AC Volvos from railway stations to the IT corridor in Outer ring Roads.

“There are many people travelling from Mysuru to Bengaluru by railways every day. Instead of travelling to the city centre, passengers can alight at Kengeri and a take bus to work. Even now, people working in IT companies in Banashankari and Silk Board take a bus via Uttarahalli main road,” says Santosh R, who travels from Ramanagara by train and works in BTM.

Intra-city trains are growing more popular and bus services that are in sync with trains are the need of the hour. However, due to Covid, only 80 Vayu Vajra services are operating across Bengaluru, doing around 500 trips daily. There is huge demand for the high-end Vajra bus connectivity for Kengeri Railway station. Bus routes include Koramangala, Indira nagar, HAL, Residency Road, Old Airport Road, Hosakerehalli, Banashankari IInd stage, Koramangala and Silk Board. The high demand could be due to BMTC slashing bus fares by 34 percent. The corporation intends to gradually increase the number of A/C buses.

A senior official from the department of Chief Traffic Manager, BMTC says “Numbers will be increased once COVID is under control. A Vajra bus route from Kengeri to the IT Corridor is under examination. Buses at Cantonment station will also be verified because trains which come to Cantonment will also reach KSR station, so commuters can board Vajra buses from Majestic.”