APSRTC Buses – The preferred means of traveling in the city of Hyderabad

With a population of around 70 lakhs, Hyderabad is one of the most populous cities in India. The city of Hyderabad offers a number of employment opportunities, both white collar and blue collar; hence it attracts people from different parts of India to come to work. A large number of working population in Hyderabad rely on public transport to travel. Not only employees, school/university students, job seekers, children, elderly, and housewives, maids, almost all of them ride the state public transportation: APSRTC (State Highway Transportation Corporation of Andhra Pradesh).

Why do people of Hyderabad prefer APSRTC?

Although there are different means of public transportation such as SETWIN buses (sponsored by state government but not part of APSRTC), MMTS (local trains), cars, rental taxis, etc., APSRTC buses (generally called city buses/ RTC buses) are the most preferred option for many people in Hyderabad.

Many people travel by city buses because:

•Inexpensive: With four rupees, you can travel up to 3 km on a regular bus in the city of Hyderabad. You can travel from Dilsukhnagar to Secunderabad (around 13 km) with just Rs.11. As a side note, gas price increases in the state are forcing people to lock their vehicles at home.

•Comfortable: People find that traveling in city buses is more comfortable than traveling in other vehicles, sometimes they prefer city buses to their personal vehicles. They do not need to deal with traffic jams, common during rush hour in various parts of the city. The seats and ventilation in the buses are very decent. Since these buses are larger, they have better shock absorbers that help in a comfortable ride on the bumpy roads of Hyderabad.

•Reduced exposure to contamination -RTC nozzle seats are much higher than the ground. Unlike cars and other vehicles, passengers won’t have a problem with smoke coming into the vehicle from the tailpipes of other vehicles.

•Safe and Secure -Compared to other transportation options, RTC buses are very safe. Drivers are generally well trained and know how to drive in the city. You can see his driving skills on narrow roads with crowded public like in Sultan Bazaar, Koti.

•Convenience: RTC buses cover almost all areas of the city. You will find a bus stop every half kilometer in the city center. Although most buses leave around 6 am, there are some services that will start at 3:30 am in the morning. You can find buses running in the city until midnight.

APSRTC – main actor in public transport:

The above mentioned reasons will definitely make them the preferred options for traveling in the city. This may be why APSRTC does a good job of providing transportation to city citizens despite constant revenue losses. We’ll look at some interesting statistics on the APSRTC buses (only city services, not district) that made them the choice of the people.

•According to the latest statistics, 72% of the population of Hyderabad uses public transport (buses, cars, taxis, MMTS) as their main mode of transportation. Of which 98% depend on APSRTC.

•The organization maintains a bus fleet with more than 4,000 buses running on different routes covering almost all areas, not only in the city center but also in suburban areas.

•Daily, RTC buses make almost 40,000 trips in the city, transporting around 36 lakh (on average) people.

•From 2,480 buses in 2000-02, RTC buses in the city increased to 3,521 buses in 2009-10.

Types of RTC buses that can be found on the roads of Hyderabad:

There are a variety of RTC bus services in Hyderabad. The bus fare depends on the level of comfort it provides.

• Ordinary: More than 2,000 ordinary urban buses are folding in the city. These buses are one of the cheapest ways to travel in the city. Just by paying 5 rupees we can travel up to 4 km on these buses. These buses are painted in white and orange colors and the minimum fare on these buses is Rs 4/- (up to three bus stops). These buses are always full; Unless you board the bus at the initial stop or if it’s an odd time (afternoon or night), you’ll rarely get a seat to sit down.

•Metro Express: Around 1,215 Metro Express buses circulate through the city. While ordinary buses stop at all stops, Metro Express will stop only at major bus stops. The minimum fee on these nozzles is 6 rupees. They are slightly larger and more spacious than ordinary mouthpieces, and are often painted blue.

•JNNURM Metro Express: These are special buses that are licensed to the city under the JNNURM (Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission) scheme. Although the fares and stops are similar to the Metro Express, they look different. These nozzles are longer and wider with semi-low floors. These buses have LED displays that display the bus number; The origin of the bus and the stops on the route are also displayed. You can find them in white and blue. CNG buses are also introduced and there are currently about 147 CNG Metro Express buses in operation in the city.

•Metro Deluxe: Deluxe buses stop at fewer places than Metro Express buses and are painted green. The minimum fare on these buses is Rs 8/- and we can find special seats on these buses. As of now, around 50 luxury buses run through the city.

•Veera: Although Deluxe and Veera are the same, they differ in their appearance. These nozzles are blue in color, have LED displays, and also have a semi-low floor. Ticket rates are the same again. These buses were launched during the 2002 National Games to transport players. Therefore, they got the name of Veera, which was the mascot of the National Games.

•City Blade: These mouthpieces offer maximum comfort. City Sheetals are air-conditioned, have a special seating arrangement, with fold-down seats, ample legroom, and plenty of room for passengers to board. On these buses you cannot find bedside trips as the doors are completely locked and the driver opens and closes the automatic door at each stop. You can find them in green color and the minimum fare on these buses is Rs 10/-. There are currently 86 City Sheetals operating in the city.

•Mini Buses: They are the last to enter the city, popularly called Charminar mini buses. They are small in size compared to the other buses, with a seating capacity of less than 32-40 seats. As of now, they are only operating in the Charminar area as they are specially designed to ride in the narrow streets of the old city. The ticket fares are similar to those of ordinary buses and you can find them in white and red colors.

A huge fleet of buses, cheap fares, comfortable rides and, above all, RTC buses allow a safe ride for all passengers. It may be that these are more than enough to become a common man’s choice.