The All India Tourist Bus Operators Association, Karnataka, on Tuesday said that the operators were too small an entity to influence the Indian Railways on running trains between Bangalore and Mangalore.
When the association’s response was sought on the allegation of the private bus lobby influencing the Railways to run the proposed Bangalore-Mangalore express train via Mysore (a report appeared in these columns on Tuesday), association president Suresh Sharma of Sharma Transport denied the allegations.
He said that both the segments — buses and trains — have their own dedicated sets of patrons due to the inherent features of the respective operators.
He added that people in Dakshina Kannada are wise enough to choose the appropriate mode of transport. While trains offer a comfortable journey, journey by bus has its own advantages, including easy booking and cancellation of tickets, he said.
