The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : RTC night services from Dasara

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Thursday, Sep 20, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

RTC night services from Dasara

Twenty-five buses to run initially

Night services will operate from midnight to 4 a.m.
Hitch in recruitment of conductors, drivers delays plan

HYDERABAD: The Andhra Pradesh State Road Corporation (APSRTC) will start its night services in select routes of the twin cities from Dasara.

To begin with, 25 buses will be put into service which will ply between 12 midnight and 4 a.m., officials said on Wednesday.

Interacting with media persons after a phone-in-programme on Wednesday, Chairman of the Hyderabad zone K. Sanjeeva Reddy said that the project got delayed because of hitches in recruiting drivers and conductors for such a project.

On select routes

“We have solved that problem and night services will be introduced on a pilot basis at select locations where we feel that night time commuting is active. The new initiative will bring general public closer to the RTC,” Mr. Reddy said.

On the issue of plans to introduced air-conditioned Volvo bus services for people working in IT sector,

Mr. Reddy said that a proposal had been already sent to the Government for approval. “We need Rs. 500 crore to take up the project, which is pending with the Government.

Once implemented, this project would ease the traffic of private vehicles and cabs, which are presently being used as transport by employees of IT and ITES sector,” Mr. Reddy said.

250 more buses

By the end of this year, RTC would add 250 more buses to its fleet and by the end of 2008, another 700 buses would be added in city.

“In all, we are expecting 950 additional buses to be plying on the city roads by 2008,” he said.

Solution in a week

The phone-in-programme, conducted between 11 a.m. and 12 noon, was a good method of knowing the operational problems being faced by commuters of the RTC, officials maintained.

“The representations will be forwarded to the respective depot and regional managers and solved within a week,” Mr. Sanjeeva Reddy claimed.

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