BENGALURU: Barring air-conditioned and midi-buses, the entire fleet of Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation buses (BMTC) will take on a blue and white hue in the near future. A decision to this effect has been taken by BMTC following an extensive survey. The 850 a/c buses will continue to run in their full blue colour while the 400 midi-buses (lesser in length than regular ones) will retain their orange shade.
The decision to change the colour of the 5,299 regular buses was taken at the BMTC board meeting held on June 23, said an official. Confirming this, Principal Secretary to the Transport department B Basavaraju said, “BMTC had conducted an extensive survey among drivers, conductors and passengers on the preferred colour for buses. In the past, we had these blue-and-white coloured buses and most of those surveyed opted for that combination.”
The Principal Secretary said he had personally interacted with a few of the respondents. “Drivers, in particular, felt that the colour blue was brightly visible in conditions of dim visibility like early mornings and late nights. It enhances the visibility of an approaching bus. Hence, it is a better colour from the safety point of view,” he said.
A BMTC official said, “When BMTC was bifurcated from the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation in 1997, all buses were uniformly blue and white. But that changed over time,” he recalled.
Asked about a time frame for effecting the change, a senior BMTC official said, “We are not doing it at one go. Every bus has to undergo an annual Fitness Certification. The bus is subjected to a major overhaul prior to that. The change in colour will be carried out during that time.”
There will be no separate expense earmarked for it as it will be included in part of overall improvements, he added. The meeting also reiterated that pink seats will be earmarked for women to discourage men from sitting on them.