After winding up at office, Supriya would rather wait for her 12G ladies’ special than hop on to a any bus that would take her home. She is not alone. Many other women display a fierce loyalty to this service, which plies from Anna Square to K.K. Nagar, even glossing over the fact that the bus does not stick to timings.
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Waiting for the bus is preferable to boarding any other bus on the route that would certainly be crowded, says Supriya, who works in a private firm near Luz.
She takes this bus anytime between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m.
The bus may not stick to fixed timings, but it at least operates during rush hour. And that is more than what could be said for ladies specials plying on many other routes.
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“I know there is a ladies special on the 11G route, but I have hardly seen it during peak hours. I choose to take the regular service and not wait for the ladies special,” says Lakshmi, who travels every day from West Mambalam to Broadway.
Ladies’ special buses have been plying in the city since the 60s, primarily catering to working and college-going women.
“There are 200 special services for women and children run by the MTC. These buses are operated between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. in the morning and between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. in the evening. There are no plans of increasing the service,” says a MTC official. From depots like Mogapaapir East and Ambattur, only one bus is operated, and that too only in the morning.
At Thiruvanmiyur, ladies specials are operated on route numbers 102 K and 95 at 8.30 a.m. and 4.30 p.m. But, women travellers using these services say this is not enough. “We also do not know the exact timing of the buses. If more such services are introduced, it would help a lot of women commuters,” says Supriya.