The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is giving the railways a run for their money for the very first time.
With KSRTC commencing long-distance AC low-floor services connecting cities, passengers will have to pay less than AC class in either superfast or express trains.
Train travel was considered much more economical than long distance superfast or super express buses till now.
For instance while a commuter can travel to Kottayam from Ernakulam for `120 on the JnNURM air-conditioned bus, he/she has to dole out Rs 218 to travel third class on an AC express train and `249 for the equivalent class on an AC superfast train.
“Long distance services would charge fares based on the rates fixed for JnNURM buses with the minimum fare being Rs 10 and 110 paise for every km after the first fare stage. Buses would have only limited stops – only the fare stages of superfast category buses. In effect they have less stops and travel time than the superfasts,” a top official in KSRTC said.
For instance while the time allotted to a superfast bus to cover the Ernakulam-Thiruvananthapuram section is five hours and 15 minutes, the time for the AC low-floor bus is five hours.
A total of eight AC low-floor buses, six from Kochi and two from Thiruvananthapuram, will be conducting services mainly during peak hours (each bus conducting three trips). From Ernakulam, services will be conducted to Kozhikode (via Edapal, Rs 314), Nilambur (via Shornur, Rs288), Pala (Rs 112), Kottayam (via Vaikom, Rs 120) and Thodupuzha (Rs94).
Two buses from the Thiruvananthapuram city will conduct services to Ernakulam (Rs 336).