Udupi, Sept 11: Five new sophisticated bus stands in the temple town at a cost of Rs 50 crore in the next one year, according to Udupi district in-charge minister Pramod Madhwaraj.
He was speaking after laying the foundation stone for the JnNURM bus stand, built at a cost of Rs 4 crore.
The minister said that a service bus station will be constructed in 3-acre land at Bannanje at a cost of Rs 35 crore while a city bus stations will come up at Udupi and Manipal at a cost of Rs 10 crore.
Pramod said while the state government is committed to providing better transport services to people, it is also determined to overcome efforts by private bus operators to scuttle JnNURM bus services that KSRTC has come forward to operate in the district. "JnNURM bus service will help rural people, senior citizens and students get better service at subsidized rates," he surmised.
The new KSRTC bus station spread over three storeys will facilitate parking of 10 buses at a time, he said adding it will also have space for 20 cars. The bus station will also have nine commercial complexes, he said adding construction of the new station will be completed in 10 months. The spread out bus operations across the city from bus stations to be developed shortly will also help decongest the present transport hub and facilitate easier movement of traffic, he said.
KSRTC chairman and Baindoor MLA Gopal Poojary, chief guest, said KSRTC will invite tenders for construction of the bus stations in next three-days. About KSRTC bus operations, he said the corporation is awaiting fixation of timings for 87 permits applied before the RTA, which is also yet to take a call on 63 permits. At present, KSRTC is operating 44 buses in the district, he said, adding the corporation is poised to buy 1800 new buses and replace 1000 old buses.
KSRTC will allot 11 new Volvo buses for Mangaluru division of KSRTC, he said adding the corporation will set up a depot in Karkala if the government provides suitable land. A sum of Rs 10 crore has been set aside for a bus depot n Baindoor, he said adding steps have been initiated to set up a separate division of the corporation in Udupi. KSRTC is committed to perking up services to rural areas including the Kundapur-Hosangadi-Shivamogga route, the MLA noted.
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