Peeved with not getting reservation on trains to destinations like Hyderabad, Tirupathi, Chennai and Bangalore?
Relax. You can try ‘Vennela', ‘Garuda plus' and ‘Garuda' services of AP State Road Transport Corporation to travel in air-conditioned comfort.
Thanks to the indifference of the Railways in providing additional coaches and special trains despite the high demand, many passengers are finding the AC services of RTC as a cool alternative. The corporation has come out with state-of-the-art Isuzu Sleeper coaches (Vennela) and multi-axle Volvo buses to cater to the high demand of passengers travelling from the city.
“The berths on Vennela are very good and are comparable to 3-tier AC in trains. These buses are taking the same amount of time to reach their destination as trains and due to their advanced features the comfort levels are also high,” said M.R.K. Mitra, a fabricator from Rajahmundry, who travels frequently to Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Bangalore. “An added advantage of RTC is that, in the unlikely event of a breakdown, an alternative bus is immediately rushed to the spot. Those who travel by private buses remain stranded on the road during such times,” he says.
“I travelled from Vizag to Bangalore recently. The running and food service on board were good. I had opted for RTC as I had to go urgently and there was no room on trains,” Srinivas of Srikakulam said.
“While the long distance AC services are very good, mineral water bottles are not being given by RTC in short distance services like Bangalore to Chittoor unlike its competitors in the private sector,” says Ramakrishna, Vice Principal of AP Residential School at Chittoor.
He, however, feels that RTC is more reliable.
A free pick-up and drop facility for passengers travelling by AC was launched by RTC Executive Director (Engineering and IT) G. Jaya Rao recently.
“This is a value-added service for our passengers and we plan to introduce more such passenger-friendly features in the near future,” says Regional Manager Y. Jagadeesh Babu.
“The free pick-up facility is available for passengers who book their tickets in advance. At present, it is extended to those staying to the north of the city like Madhurawada, Rushikonda and MVP Colony and it will be extended to other areas based on demand,” Deputy Chief Traffic Manager (Rural) Jeevan Prasad said.
