The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) will introduce low-floor air-conditioned and non air-conditioned buses in the city and its suburbs shortly.
As many as 100 buses will be allotted to three districts of Kozhikode, Wayanad, and Malappuram districts under the JNNURM (Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission) for improving urban transportation.
Thirty air-conditioned buses are likely to be rolled out this month and the remaining 70 non-AC buses, next month.
It is hoped that private car owners will switch to the comfortable low-entry buses as was evident in Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram cities, officials said.
There would be three clusters for operating the services: Kozhikode-Malappuram-Wayanad; Kasaragod-Kannur; and Thrissur-Palakkad. Suggestions have been made to the KSRTC to introduce town-to-town services connecting districts. The non-AC buses would be inducted into the fleet only in the second phase.
One of the low-floor buses will ply via the court complex. This was decided following a meeting between the KSRTC officials and judicial officers in presence of District Judge V. Bhaskaran last week.
The service will be operated via Thamarassery- Kunnamangalam- Malaparamba- Fatima Hospital- KSRTC bus station- Mofussil bus station- Mananchira- C.H. overbridge- Cherotty road- Court- complex- Corporation office to reach the final destination at Beach Hospital.
These timings will be designed in such a way that it would be suitable to the staff, lawyers, and others visiting the court complex. Likewise, service will be greatly beneficial to those visiting the Corporation office and the beach hospital, G. Manoharlal, secretary, Calicut Bar Association, said.
Additional services would be operated after the city gets more low-floor buses. A bus service on this route has been a long-pending demand.
There was a service even in the 1960s. But it was cancelled following complaints of traffic congestion. The meeting also decided to solve any traffic snarls after the introduction of low-floor buses with the assistance of the police.
