Bangalore, Sep 5 (DHNS) : The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) on Tuesday flagged off the country’s longest (14.5 mts) inter-city Volvo multi-axle bus.

After launching the service, Deputy Chief Minister R Ashoka said that the idea behind the long coach bus was to support efficient mass bus-based transport system, with economic utilisation of resource.

“We want to take the passenger comfort to a new level while travelling in KSRTC buses.

This Volvo 9400PX bus will ply between Bangalore and Mysore on a pilot basis and will be expanded to Bangalore-Chennai, Bangalore-Tirupati, Bangalore-Pune, Bangalore-Hyderabad, Bangalore-Panaji and other routes.

The bus also has an in-built pantry and a chemical toilet. For the Bangalore-Mysore route, the fare will be Rs 300,” he said.

The 41-seater has in-built television sets fitted in the back of each seat. Besides, mobile chargers are attached to each row.

A hatrack, a wash basin, a big size pantry, a coffee maker, a refrigerator along with a steerable rear tag-axle for better manoeuvrability, enhanced stability and larger luggage space are its other features.

The Transport Department has been plying a 14.5-mt bus with a passenger capacity of 110 for the last six weeks on the Outer Ring road in Bangalore.

BMTC MD K Srinivas said that the response was good and they were planning to introduce these buses on select routes.