The Hindu (Bangalore)

Passengers complain about non-availabili­ty of KSRTC buses ahead of elections

- Pranathi Nandula Adithi A.

The rainfall in the evening and the overcrowde­d buses made travelling to hometowns from Bengaluru uncomforta­ble for people ahead of the elections in the State, on Monday.

Thousands of passengers were at the Majestic and Yeshwantpu­r bus stands trying to secure tickets for private or Karnataka State Road Transport Corporatio­n buses.

KSRTC o cials acknowledg­ed that there was a shortage of buses

More buses needed

Prema, a resident of Yelahanka,

was among the many waiting at Majestic to travel to Kalaburagi. She voiced her disappoint­ment, saying, “Finding a bus to return home and vote has been a struggle. The frequency of buses has not been increased to meet the demand. Political leaders urge us to vote, but the government’s e”orts to facilitate our travel during elections are lacking. We need more buses to ensure we can exercise our right to vote.”

Amaresh M., who was travelling with his wife and three children to Raichur, had similar complaints. “There is not a single bus to take my family home. I could not reserve seats either. There are simply not enough buses to handle the rush,” he said.

Buses for election

KSRTC o‹cials acknowledg­ed that there was a shortage of buses. “We have sent 6,000 buses for election. But both on Sunday and Monday, our o‹cials were at bus stands and ensured that there were buses, even if there was a slight delay,” said V. Anbu Kumar, Managing Director of KSRTC.

Many commuters said they faced di‹culties while booking tickets. Mushtaq Ahmed, a resident of Bannerghat­ta Road, who was travelling to Davangere from Yeshwanthp­ur, said, “I have been trying to book a ticket from 10, but I could not get it. There was a long waiting list for Sunday and Monday due to the election rush. Somehow, my ticket was •nally con•rmed on Monday afternoon.”

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