Kadamba Transport Corporation set to offer bus pool service

PANAJI: Blaming the public transport system for your delay to work may no longer be a valid reason, as the Kadamba Transport Corporation Limited is all set to make your bus journey hassle-free. In view of the increase in commuters travelling from the interiors of the state for jobs or classes to town, the corporation will now provide a facility that provides buses on request for KTC pass-holding commuters who will be picked up and dropped from select locations, provided they are in a group.
KTCL managing director, Derrick Pereira Neto said, "The service is not just for government employees, students and office-goers can benefit from it as well. For instance, if there are around 30 to 40 employees travelling from Margao to Panaji every day from one point (or bus stop), they can inform us and we will arrange for a bus. The bus will pick up the employees from a select location and they will have to present their pass while boarding the bus."
Pereira Neto said "The idea behind launching this facility was to reduce the over-crowding of bus stands during peak hours. We wanted to cut off some load of routine commuters at bus stands so that they would not get delayed." Shuttle commuters, in particular, waiting in long queues make for a common sight at the Margao and Panaji KTC bus stands.
The corporation has already started executing the service on a trial basis, with three buses deployed for the employees of the directorate of health services, Kala Academy and sports authority of Goa for the last 10 days. A bus for commuters travelling to Goa Medical College and Hospital along with another one for employees of the Goa state pollution control board also transits regularly.
Around four buses also ply from the secretariat for the employees' convenience. A bus for student s of Goa engineering college has also been deployed. Pereira Neto said, "We are currently trying to identify places in Margao and other locations where we could park the deployed buses. We cannot park the buses anywhere, as the Regional Transport Officer will fine us."
He said that the corporation alone would not be in a position to propel change. "Passengers should also have some civic sense and follow some form of discipline," he said, referring to incidents of undisciplined passengers skipping the shuttle queue.