Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) Chairman Konakalla Narayana on December 10 (Friday) urged officials of the public transport carrier to ensure that no passenger waiting at the bus stand should be left behind during the Sankranti festival.
Addressing a review meeting with senior officials of the Vijayawada zone to discuss facilities being provided to the public during the festival, Mr. Narayana Rao said safe transportation of passengers to their respective destinations should be the top priority. Expressing hope that this Sankranti would bring joy to everyone, he said transport needs of people travelling from other States to their home towns in Andhra Pradesh should be taken care of.
He said a total of 1,370 special buses would be operated to various destinations from NTR district before and after the festival. Of them, 621 buses would travel towards Hyderabad, 235 to Rajamahendravaram, 122 to Visakhapatnam, 37 to Bengaluru, 27 to Chennai and 328 to other destinations.
He directed the officials to deploy staff on special duty at bus stations for continuous monitoring of the situation and ensure regular review of the advance reservations for need-based deployment of additional buses. He said efforts should be made to avoid congestion at Vijayawada and other major bus stations and “all passengers, including the last one, should be transported to his/her destination.”
Mr. Narayana Rao made it clear that no private vehicles should be allowed to be parked on the premises of bus stations and the RTC, with the help of the Police Department, staff should prevent fleecing of travellers by private bus operators during the festival time. He said the APSRTC drivers should follow strict discipline and behave courteously with passengers, and in view of the winter season and foggy weather conditions, they should navigate roads carefully to avoid accidents.
He said should the demand for additional buses rise, officials should arrange rental buses to cater to the festival crowd and information of the bus schedules and additional buses should be provided to passengers promptly.
The meeting was attended by the Vijayawada zone Executive Director G. Vijayaratnam, District Transport Officer M.Y. Danam and others.
Published – January 10, 2025 09:48 pm IST
