The story is no different for monthly concessional pass holders, who have to factor a minimum half hour wait in their travel time, sometimes twice a day. But if recent statistics presented during the ongoing Legislative Assembly session are to be believed, these commuters should face some respite. In reply to a question raised regarding functional Kadamba Transport Corporation (KTC) buses, transport minister Ramkrishna ‘Sudin’ Dhavalikar stated that in 2013-14, of 582 buses 456 were operational. However, according to KTC chairman Carlos Almeida, as of July statistics only 60 buses are out of commission, not 126. Why then hasn’t this affected the winding queues?

“The number of passengers travelling everyday using concessional passes has soared and this has lead to an overall increase in the number of people travelling by Kadamba buses,” Almeida says, acknowledging the need for more buses to ferry pass holders, and also hinting at a cap on the number of new passes granted per month to help ease the congestion during

rush hour. The concessional pass scheme began in 2012 and since then KTC has issued over 2.6 lakh passes, with hundreds

pending clearance. “By November end we will begin scraping non-functional buses and by January 2015, we plan to commission new buses entirely,” he says. In 2012-13, 314 of the 421 buseswere functioning, while 2011-12 saw 299 out of 412 buses. Latest statistics reveal that there are only 462 KTC buses in operational condition plying through various routes within the state and to nearby states. In a bid to make KTC more accessible over the internet, plans are underway

to introduce a service for commuters to track buses from Margao and Panjim bus stands based on bus numbers. Currently,

e-ticket bookings to interstate routes are running successfully. Under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban

Renewal Mission (JNNURM), the corporation also plans to introduce 125 buses along commercial routes within

cities.

Ninety-nine new buses were introduced

in February this year, of which

75 buses have a seating capacity of 50

passengers and 24 buses have a capacity

of 40. Since their introduction they

have been plying along shuttle routes

to Panjim, Margao, Vasco, Ponda,

Sakhali, Savordem and Mapusa. New