The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), which has been badly hit by the pandemic, is experimenting with the alignment of seats in its fleet of buses to help passengers maintain distance from each other.
It has reduced the seats in a Rajahamsa bus from 39 to 29 by realigning them so that there are three seats instead of four in a row. The bus runs on the Bengaluru-Mysuru route.
“We will take a decision on changing the seating alignment in other buses based on the response from passengers,” said a KSRTC official. .
The realignment was done in the Corporation’s central workshop in Bengaluru. “This will help in maintaining social distancing, and also provide more comfort. The middle seats have been fixed on the passage. Space has been provided for the movement of passengers on either side of the middle seat,” said the official.
No festive demand
The Corporation’s losses have been mounting as a majority of its fleet, including luxury AC buses, has remained off the road over the last four months. During the festive season, KSRTC would run additional buses. However, this time there is no such demand.
“We are not getting enough passengers for operational buses. We do not see demand for additional buses this time as the movement of people is really low due to the fear of COVID-19,” the official said.
