Vijayawada bus station under lens after multiple passenger mishaps

Vijayawada: Passengers' lives are at peril at the Pandit Nehru Bus Station, widely known as the Vijayawada main bus station, as at least two passengers lost their lives and as many were injured in the last six months while attempting to board buses or after being hit by buses within the station premises. The deaths have largely been attributed to passengers trying to crisscross amid moving buses at both the arrival and departure blocks inside the bus station.In a fresh incident, a woman sustained a leg fracture after being hit by an RTC Super Luxury bus while attempting to cross the road between the arrival and departure blocks. A video of the incident has gone viral online.The bus station has been witnessing a surge in passenger footfall, with around two lakh passengers thronging the main bus station and city bus terminal every day to commute to different parts of the state. The rush has been particularly high ever since the state govt rolled out the free bus travel scheme for women in RTC buses, leading to an increase in the number of women passengers seeking confirmed seats."The bus station has a subway connecting the departure and arrival blocks, allowing passengers to move between the two without having to cross through moving buses and risk their lives. However, many passengers use the road between the blocks, as they are unaware of the subway within the bus station," APSRTC NTR deputy chief traffic manager (DyCTM) Sai Charan Teja said.The official added that passengers tend to use this dangerous road as it provides easier access to the platforms between the arrival and departure blocks."To streamline the passengers' movement inside the bus station, the RTC has been deploying traffic controllers at the platforms. One controller is being deployed per three platforms to streamline the passengers' movement. In all, around 25 controllers are in place to regulate the passengers' flow," the DyCTM told TOI."We have submitted a proposal to recruit private security personnel to utilise their services inside the bus station. However, the proposal has not received the authorities' nod. There is a need for at least 50 traffic controllers inside the bus station. Currently, there are only 25, and we sought the appointment of another 25 private security personnel to meet the demand at the bus station," Charan added.To prevent further deaths, passengers have stressed the need for constructing a foot overbridge across the road connecting both blocks. They also suggested restricting access to this road and encouraging the use of the subway, although enforcing such measures may be challenging.