Snags lead to traffic snarls, commuters doubting buses' reliability; corporation says fund shortage is to blame

BMTC's breakdown rate: 12 buses a day

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BMTC's breakdown rate: 12 buses a day

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Snags lead to traffic snarls, commuters doubting buses' reliability; corporation says fund shortage is to blame

Needs A push: Commuters say BMTC buses' reliability isu00a0 becoming a
major concern for them. File pic

A BMTC official from the KBS Area said the number can be as high as 20 in a single day for buses departing from his station. Mukkanna, Chief Mechanical Engineer, BMTC, said the problem persists despite the corporation spending almost Rs 385 crore annually on parts for maintaining its fleet of over 6,000 buses.

"We are seeing an average of 10-12 breakdowns every day, with most being the result of minor problems," he said. "But three or four of those are due to serious reasons too. The buses are breaking down because of many reasons, like the need for spares, human failure and mechanical failure."

Environmental cost
Bus breakdowns force people to use their own vehicles, which, in turn, adds to the pollution choking the city. Buses are more environment-friendly and can keep private vehicles off the road. Unfortunately reliability is now becoming a major concern, say commuters.

Usama Sheriff, a daily commuter, said, "The constant breaking down of BMTC Buses is a nuisance. There was a massive traffic jam when a bus broke down in north Bangalore. Such things cause a lot of inconvenience to bus commuters as well as people with their own vehicles. A bus breakdown clogs the road."

Balam, a traffic cop who patrols the Brigade Road and Residency Road intersection, said breakdowns cause chaos with the traffic.

"We get reports of about 10 breakdowns every single day. Traffic is affected very badly because of these breakdowns," he said.

Solutions
The BMTC claims it has a breakdown rate of only 0.05 per cent per 10,000 km. They run daily maintenance checks, 10-day inspections and the buses are serviced after every 10,000 km travelled.

The BMTC has also commissioned a third-party report from credit agency Onicra to see how it can allocate more funds towards maintaining its fleet. "We want to provide more funds to arrest the problem of breakdowns. Unfortunately, we just don't have any at the moment," said Mukanna.

More to come

Transport Minister R Ashok recently announced the induction of another 4,000 buses into the BMTC fleet within two years, including many with Wi-Fi and touch screen technology.