Ganesha Festival Drives Heavy Demand for Government and Private Buses

The festive rush has started across Karnataka as families leave Bengaluru and other cities for their hometowns. With Gauri and Ganesha celebrations coinciding with consecutive holidays, bus services to major districts and religious destinations are witnessing a significant increase in passengers.

The Kempegowda Bus Station in Majestic has been particularly busy, with crowds gathering at both KSRTC terminals. Many passengers are heading towards coastal Karnataka, northern districts, Malnad areas and popular pilgrimage destinations to celebrate the festival with their families.

The increased demand has also brought attention to private bus fares. Operators of AC and non AC sleeper services have reportedly raised ticket prices by around 40 percent to 100 percent on several routes during the holiday period.

Passengers have expressed frustration over the steep increase. Many travellers say that a small fare increase may be manageable, but an additional Rs 1,000 or Rs 2,000 can make festival travel considerably more expensive for families.

The fare increase has also led to criticism of the Regional Transport Office. Passengers have questioned why stricter action has not been taken when private operators allegedly charge substantially higher fares during periods of heavy demand.

To handle the rush, KSRTC has arranged around 2,400 additional special buses from Bengaluru for two days. The additional services are aimed at helping passengers reach their destinations without depending entirely on private operators.

Special buses are being operated from different terminals based on the destination. Services from Kempegowda Bus Station include routes towards Dharmasthala, Kukke Subrahmanya, Shivamogga, Hassan, Mangaluru, Kundapura, Sringeri, Horanadu and Davanagere.

Buses are also being operated towards Hubballi, Dharwad, Belagavi, Vijayapura, Gokarna, Sirsi, Karwar, Raichur, Kalaburagi, Ballari, Koppal, Yadgir and Bidar. Special services to destinations outside Karnataka, including Tirupati, Vijayawada and Hyderabad, are also being arranged.

Passengers travelling towards Mysuru and Kodagu regions can use services from the Mysuru Road Bus Station. Buses from this terminal are serving Mysuru, Hunsur, Piriyapatna, Virajpet, Kushalnagar and Madikeri.

The transport arrangements also extend to neighbouring states. Services from the Shantinagar BMTC terminal are operating towards destinations in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, including Madurai, Kumbakonam, Chennai, Coimbatore, Tiruchirappalli, Palakkad, Thrissur, Ernakulam and Kozhikode.

The additional services are expected to reduce pressure at major bus terminals as the festival approaches. Transport authorities are also encouraging passengers to make use of advance reservations wherever possible.

A concession has been announced for passengers who book seats in advance. Groups of four or more travelling together can receive a 5 percent discount on advance bookings, according to the transport corporation.

Passengers planning both onward and return journeys can also benefit from another concession. Those who reserve tickets for both trips together will receive a 10 percent discount on the return journey fare.

The festival period is traditionally one of the busiest travel seasons in Karnataka, as people working or studying away from their hometowns often return home for celebrations. Bengaluru, being a major employment and education hub, sees a particularly large movement of passengers during consecutive holidays.

For many families, travelling home is an important part of the festival, which makes availability and reasonable fares a major concern. While government buses have increased capacity to manage the rush, passengers using private services are keeping a close watch on ticket prices.

With the festive movement continuing over the next few days, transport officials are expected to monitor passenger numbers and adjust services according to demand. The additional KSRTC buses could provide some relief to travellers facing limited availability and higher private bus fares.