KSRTC officials at Perumbavoor have submitted a proposal to the Chief Office seeking extension of Thiru-Kochi services to Perumbavoor.
The request was made by Perumbavoor ATO C Venugopal, who said city buses could be more profitable if it is utilised in the Ernakulam-Perumbavoor route.
“Three Thiru-Kochi buses had been allotted to operate from Ernakulam to Pookattupady (on the way to Perumbavoor). However, that is not being operated properly from the Ernakulam depot due to lack of will as well as staff. Since the route is extremely profitable, we have sought permission from the Chief Office at Thiruvananthapuram to operate the services from the Perumbavoor depot,” he said.
Currently, no Thiru-Kochi services are allowed to be operated off city limits as per KSRTC orders. “Since Perumbavoor is off city limits, the management won’t offer us the permission. However, we are pressing the management on the issue,” Venugopal said.
Many Thiru-Kochi buses are not being utilised to the maximum within the city limits, he alleged. “For example, the Ernakulam-Pookattupady route is extremely profitable both during the morning as well as the evening hours. However, on most days only one service is conducted and it does not receive a collection of more than Rs 5,000. Once operated from Perumbavoor, the collection could double up,” he said.
There is a demand for morning bus services from Perumbavoor to Ernakulam. Also, another trip can be operated in the afternoon. In the evenings, services can be operated back to Perumbavoor, the officials said.
There are allegations that at least 10-12 Thiru-Kochi buses are idle due to paucity of drivers and conductors.