Applying for and obtaining Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) bus passes across categories has now become easier as staff will now arrive at your doorstep, collect the application, and deliver the travel document within a matter of a few hours.
The move is part of the transport juggernaut’s attempts to build confidence among bus passengers of the Greater Hyderabad Zone, and also to increase the occupancy ratio (OR), and drive revenues forward, both of which have taken a hit post the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.
Pre-COVID occupancy
According to data, the TSRTC’s OR in 2018-19 was a little over 70. In the subsequent year, it dipped marginally to around 69. However, given the pandemic, the OR since resumption of services plummeted to around 49.
“Instead of going to the 30 bus pass counters, we have decided to send our staff to the doorstep of offices where there will be a minimum of five people desiring to take bus passes. For example, they will arrive an hour early to work, go to the doorstep of those who have applied for bus passes and, on the way back, deliver them,” said a senior TSRTC official.
The move is also intended to encourage passengers to use bus passes. Before the lockdown, the TSRTC used to generate substantial revenue by means of issuing of different categories of bus passes of around ₹75 lakh per day. Post the lockdown, the revenue has decreased to less than half. Bus pass applications nosedived due to education in schools and colleges moving to the digital space.
Further, with work-from-home being the norm, especially in the IT corridor, a large number of support staff working in IT and ITeS companies and are bus pass holders have not applied for the passes.
Pick up, drop
In a separate development ahead of Sankranti, the transport juggernaut will offer point-to-point pick up for passengers to destinations which do not have a direct route.
For instance, a group of passengers travelling from the same neighbourhood in Chengicherla to Palakonda in Srikakulam district in Andhra Pradesh can book the tickets. A TSRTC bus will arrive at their doorstep, pick them up and drop them to a destination as specified by them.
“We are looking at a minimum of 30 passengers. There is no direct bus to Palakonda. One has to go to Srikakulam first and then take a connecting bus to Palakonda. We have launched this initiative ahead of Sankranti. Now, this will be available for different destinations throughout the year,” said Greater Hyderabad Zone executive director V. Venkateshwarlu.
