Twin blows decelerate KSRTC’s chances of improving patronage

The recent surge in cases in neighbouring States as well as the ongoing border tension has hit the cash-strapped Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC). A year after the outbreak of COVID-19, the RTC is still struggling to improve patronage for its inter-State services, especially for its AC buses.

Last year, it had resumed inter-State services in a phased manner and had gradually started increasing the number of buses operated. A dip in COVID-19 cases in December was a silver lining in an otherwise dark cloud. However, the surge in COVID-19 cases in States such as Maharashtra now, has dashed any hope of a revival. Officials say only 40% of its fleet of air-conditioned buses are currently operating on inter-state routes. A senior official of the KSRTC said, “Inter-state services, especially the AC service segment, are showing no sign of recovery. For example, during pre-lockdown time, we used to run five AC services from Bengaluru to Pune, Mumbai, Shirdi and other places. But now it is difficult to find passengers for even one bus.”