There might be some good news for the residents of the twin cities who are troubled by the accumulation of dust in the air because of the slow work on the Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) between Hubballi and Dharwad. The work is likely to be completed by October-end.
Commissioner of Urban Land Transport Darpan Jain told presspersons on Saturday that the work would be completed by October-end and the traffic between the twin cities would be smoother soon.
“The work has been speeded up and the contractors have been instructed to complete it within six to eight months. The trial run of standardised buses and articulated buses on the BRTS corridor will be conducted in October,” Mr. Jain said.
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Mr. Jain, who inspected the progress of the works on Saturday, said that the project aimed at improving public transport would be a unique model in the country. The effort would be to shift those using private transport to public transport, he said. Mr. Jain said that the work on the dedicated lanes for BRTS buses had been expedited, but those in Dharwad had slowed down because of objection by property owners. The flyover at Navanagar would be completed by month-end while the work on a rail overbridge at Navalur and flyover at Unkal had been begun, he said.
Mr. Jain said that two depots-cum-workshops would come up in Dharwad on the Mitra Samaj land and another behind the new bus stand. At Hubballi, the depot, interchange facility, and workshop would come up at Hosur Circle and on Gokul Road, he said.
In all, 32 state-of-the-art bus stops would come up in two months.
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As many as 130 buses, including 100 standardised buses and 30 articulated low-floored buses, would be purchased. There would be two types of bus services, one with limited stops and another with stops at all bus stops, he added.