Daijworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Dec 12: Five routes which have the potential of running double decker buses as part of public transport system have been identified in the state. These are among more than 70 such routes identified by the union ministry of road transport and highways.

The destinations which the department feels have the potential of operating such buses from the city happen to be Hubballi, Mysuru, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Mangaluru. Some other sectors that have been identified for this purpose are Delhi - Jaipur, Visakhapatnam - Bhubaneshwar, Kohikode - Kochi, and Delhi - Agra. The department has prescribed maximum passenger capacity per each of these double decker buses as 82.

The specifications prescribed by the ministry for such buses mention that each of these buses shall have two service doors in the lower portion with a minimum of two emergency exits on the upper deck and lower deck, in addition to escape hatches.

The ministry notes that several countries have of late been giving impetus to operating such buses as part of their public transport system in order to reduce the number of cars using the roads and also to provide comfort and convenience to passengers. The initiative of the department comes close on the heels of a statement issued by minister, Nitin Gadkari, on his plans to reduce private vehicles on the roads by introducing double decker buses. He had said that by extending comfortable journey to people at a reasonable cost as an alternative to operating their own vehicles, people can be discouraged from buying new vehicles, which in turn reduces load on the roads.