Kerala Urban Road Transport Corporation (KURTC) is in the process of increasing patronage of AC and non-AC low-floor buses procured under JNNURM scheme.
The agency now operates 50 AC and 125 non-AC buses in Ernakulam district.
New routes
“New routes are being finalised and a dedicated website is being developed for KURTC buses. The domain has been registered and it will have details like route and time schedule of these premium buses once they are finalised/revised. Commuters can also get details from the agency’s head office at Thevara which will be inaugurated on April 12,” said KSRTC’s CMD Antony Chacko.
To a question on measures taken for preventing convoy services which will hamper optimal fleet utility or KURTC and KSRTC buses, Mr Chacko said that the movement of buses are being monitored and orders have been issued to depots to detain a few buses that arrive at the same time to operate in the same route, by a few minutes.
“Low collection in certain trips too is taken serious note of,” he said.
“Currently, AC buses that operate in Ernakulam district are earning around Rs 40 per kilometre, while the non-AC buses are getting Rs 30 per km. We are currently able to operate these buses without making loss,” said a senior KURTC official.
Thevara depot
Relocating 50 AC and nine non-AC low-floor buses to Thevara depot will considerably open up space at Kerala State Road Transport Corporation’s (KSRTC) Ernakulam depot, where the buses are now being parked chock-a-block. The much-neglected KSRTC depot is awaiting renovation.
“Thirty-five Thirukochi buses that operate from Ernakulam depot too might be parked in Thevara at a later stage since there is space to park a total of 300 buses,” said a senior KURTC official. The Thevara depot, owned by KSRTC but rented out to KURTC, is spread over 4.75 acres of land out of which 75 cents of land has been leased out to Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC).
The Thevara depot will have about 10 officials from KURTC, headed by its Special Officer N. G. Pradeep Kumar.
Though a total of 175 low-floor buses operate in Ernakulam district, most of the non-AC buses among them operate from KSRTC depots located in suburban towns. A few of the 400 inter-district buses being allotted to KURTC to be operated in districts other than Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram too will call at Thevara depot.
