Kochi: A major reorganisation of the services of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is on the anvil. Angamaly, a key place on the road transport network, could emerge as a major hub of all long-distance services of the KSRTC.
Passengers intending to reach the northern districts from the south will have to alight at the Angamaly KSRTC depot and board a north-bound bus. In other words, Angamaly will transform into a transit node.
This radical plan is being drawn up by the KSRTC as part of the move to implement the single-duty system for long-distance services.
The workload of the bus crew will be lessened as the new plan comes into effect, stated KSRTC CMD Biju Prabahakar.
The long-distance bus services from Thiruvanathapuram will then terminate in Angamaly, he added.
Angamaly, which is 30 km north of Kochi city, lies at the intersection of the Main Central Road and National Highway 544.
Advantages
Following the implementation of the ‘transit’ system, the crew change currently taking place at Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode will be carried out at Angamaly. An entire floor at the KSRTC complex at Angamaly will set apart as resting area for bus staff, said the MD.
According to KSRTC officials, the transit system will enable a large number of buses conducting services from the south to north along National Highway and M C Road to avoid trips beyond Angamaly. On most days, there are very few passengers to the north from Angamaly, compared to Angamaly from Thiruvananthapuram, they pointed out.
Under transit system, travellers arriving at Angamaly in 100 buses could be taken to the north in 70 buses, the officials said. “The remaining 30 buses could conduct service back to Thiruvananthapuram, where there are more passengers,” they said.
KSRTC can also reduce the number of services to the north, where there are lesser passengers, the officials added.
