Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) launched a flybus service from the airport to Mysore.
With this, Mysoreans can now fly to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai or abroad need not to deal with the hassle of getting to the Bangalore airport, a distance of about 150 km from their city.
Taxi services cost approximately Rs 4,000 and an AC Volvo bus between Mysore and Bangalore costs about Rs 300. And flyers had to hop buses to reach the Bangalore Airport.
“Flybus will pick you up in Mysore and drop you directly at the airport in four hours at a cost of `1000,” said Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy. The bus with a pantry and chemical toilet, cost the KSRTC of `1.25 crore.
KSRTC MD Manjunath Prasad is hoping that the Flybus will divert many passengers from the taxi services. “According to surveys by Bangalore International Airport, over 145 passengers from Mysore travel from there every day. Taxi services from BIA to Bangalore city itself costs `700. To Mysore, the costs are estimated at about `4000. Why not travel in a bus at 1/4th the price of hiring a taxi?” he asked. At present, only one bus will be operated between BIA and Mysore. It will leave BIA at 9.45 am and 9.45 pm and Mysore at 2 pm and 2 am every day.
The Flybus has seen over 60 bookings since advance reservations opened in August, KSRTC officials said. They were confident that the number would only increase in the coming days. “Facilities are also available for passengers to book a seat on the bus while booking their flight tickets,” Prasad said, adding that bookings could be done on websites such as Make my trip, Via.com and others.
The corporation is also in talks with various airlines to ensure that a direct ticket booking system is available in the global distribution system.
This means that airlines will offer a boarding pass for the bus along with flight tickets, if a passenger opts to travel on the Flybus.
By October, KSRTC hopes to expand the Fly bus services to Mangalore, Coimbatore, Tirupur and Tirupathi.