Buses are so intertwined with the lives of the people of Madras and one can even attribute the city’s residential expansion to their dependable operation and connectivity. For the longest time, Madras had a near monopolistic public bus service, and only a few years ago did private services mushroom across the city. It was dependable, but anytime a strike or bandh happened, the entire city’s movement would come to a grinding halt.
Initially known as PTC or the Pallavan Transport Corporation, it is now the Metropolitan Transport Corporation or MTC, a more modernistic nick that encapsulates the changing nature of the city. In its current avatar, it has been bifurcated, trifurcated and finally merged over the decades of its existence.
Today, in 2023, the MTC has a fleet of nearly 3,500 buses with 34 termini, four workshops, eight units for readying buses for fitness certificates and two tyre plants. | Photo Credit: M. Srinath
In some ways, it has remained a model for the entire country for its implementation of social initiatives, such as ticket-free rides for students, senior citizens, persons with disabilities and, more recently, women. The bus service also became an intricate part of the entertainment industry, with the making of Madras to Pondicherry (1966) and so many other films that used bus routes as titles.
R.M. Cheralathan, who retired as Managing Director of the Salem Transport Corporation and served for many years in the MTC, said Madras city had public transport right from Independence in 1947, when the Madras government nationalised public transport. The Madras State Transport Corporation was formed with 30 buses and started operating in the city.
Government takeover
However, former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi decided the government would take over the ‘routes’ of private transport operators in 1967, resulting in the formation of the Pallavan Transport Corporation and others across the State and also registering them under the Companies Act, 1956.
He said that later, the then Transport Minister Panruti Ramachandran and Thillai Nayagam, who was Chief Engineer of the Highways Department and deputed as Managing Director, paved the way for the PTC to adopt successfully a social responsibility model with a commercial approach. By implementing a longevity scheme through a new pay package and an incentive formula for bus conductors and drivers, they made it into what it is today.
MTC, which originally started with a fleet of 30 buses at one point, had to convert lorries for transporting people because of the huge crowd and had very few bus depots (also used as bus termini). Today, it has a fleet of nearly 3,500 buses with 34 termini, four workshops, eight units for readying buses for fitness certificates and two tyre plants.
The MTC has undergone a few changes in its colour scheme from the ‘post office’ red to green. Mr. Cheralathan said the MTC was in need of funds to expand its fleet, and having become a model transport corporation in the country, the World Bank (WB) sanctioned funds for acquiring 444 buses. Since the WB authorities suggested using a different colour scheme to tell apart the new buses from the old ones, green was selected. Then, in the next tranche, for purchasing 500 buses, cherry red was chosen. At one point, a two-colour scheme was also adopted to differentiate buses that were older than five years, he added.
The MTC, as early as 1946, created special ‘lorry-buses’ to operate on five routes, including the iconic 5A services (Mylapore to Adyar bus depot), to cater to the increasing passenger traffic. As part of the MTC’s evolution to provide better amenities, it later introduced double-decker buses, with one being imported from England, and air-conditioned (AC) buses.
The MTC introduced five AC buses on a trial basis in 2001. Only in 2008 did more such buses take to the streets, with 50 Volvo AC buses being introduced. They became an instant hit on Rajiv Gandhi Salai, an IT corridor.
Some setbacks
However, if there was a failure for MTC, it had to be the production of a bus accessible to persons with disabilities. The issue persists, with legal cases being fought by non-governmental organisations for the operation of buses with better accessibility.
Double-decker MTC bus. File | Photo Credit: S. Thanthoni
Mr. Cheralathan, who was a General Manager of MTC, said for better accessibility, low-floor buses were needed, whereas the bodies being built at Chromepet were for high-board buses.
In addition to this, there is the issue of proper maintenance of the vehicle, which has been lacking, and poor road conditions. The Volvo AC bus was put to scrap due to lack of regular maintenance, he added.
The MTC has also served the public during emergencies, such as floods and natural calamities and, more recently, the COVID-19 lockdowns.
