[sarathlal]

Live to Drive - an emotion we TBHPian’s hold close to our hearts. And here’s introducing Mr. Ponnukkuttan, a KSRTC bus driver who shares the same emotion.



As part of KSRTC’s recent fleet and route revival, a new era of buses under ‘SWIFT’ (Read more on this here) were supposed to replace a set of routes run by the traditional interstate buses like the Super Expresses and Super Deluxes. One such route that got axed was the Changanassery Velankanni Super Express. And as soon as the news of the same surfaced, its driver, Mr. Ponnukkuttan could not hide his emotions and social media was filled with his emotional farewell to the machine he loves to the core.

Now, KSRTC in an unexpected move decided to acknowledge the whole hearted relationship its employee is having with the bus he drives, decided to retain this service!

The man;


The machine;


The emotion;


Although much of attention turned towards the incident, this particular bus is not alien to those who follow the ‘aana vandi’ (Pet name for KSRTC buses by its fans)

Few of the older videos of the same bus in action.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m202aRNGHMM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kho94RP5gRA

Detailed news :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bNmvpAJFfo

Images: Respective owners

[GTO]

That is just so cool! Every man loves his machine, be it the fellow riding a basic electric scooter, the dude in his Thar, the industrialist in his Ferrari and the cabbie in his well-kept black & yellow Santro. I love my rusty Jeep as much as Max does his Red Bull.

A sweet reminder of that. Incredible story, thanks for sharing!

[hellmet]

I can relate so well to the emotion. Just last year I handed over the keys of our family's M800 to the MS dealer in exchange for an S-Presso. This was the car that saw me through my childhood and took me so many places. I broke into tears handing over the keys and kept bidding the car good bye until I left the parking area.

It was still functioning terrifically but it had to be replaced as we desperately wanted a car with an AC. If only I had another parking spot..

[greenhorn]

This is a bit weird. Generally KeSRTC rotates it's long distance buses out of service after a certain duration and puts them in local service routes to ensure that the long distance routes have fresh and new buses, and drivers are used to that. Can someone who has more recent knowledge of these things help

[Malyaj]

The feeling is understandable. Truck drivers too are quite attached to their trucks. Perhaps more than bus drivers are.

This reminds of a day long back in school (I think almost 30 years back). I was on staff room duty (or something like that, I don't recall what it was called). Every student had to do staff room duty once in a year, where they would help out the teachers in admin related stuff. That day I was with the Admin incharge of the school who was listening to the sob story of a school bus driver.

"Meri mini bus mujhe wapas karo", the driver said. He was adamant they he wanted to drive the Mini bus and not the recently inducted, fancier bus. The 'Mini bus' was a crap bus actually (I used to travel on it), but very chuckable and I could understand that the driver wanted it back badly.

[ike]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

This is a bit weird. Generally KeSRTC rotates it's long distance buses out of service after a certain duration and puts them in local service routes to ensure that the long distance routes have fresh and new buses, and drivers are used to that.

They have increased that duration recently(not sure how much exactly it is now) and I understand both buses in the route (ATC93 & ATC 95) have serviceable life left.
EDIT: the service life is 9 yrs and the bus is 5 yrs & 3 months old.

[sukhbirST]

Thanks to the media, we are noticing this connect/bonding. Well have seen this closely with drivers in north , mostly truck drivers and bus drivers including conductors/cleaners.
So attached are they, that they become really aggressive and violent on even small things. Some even do pooja/prayers on these machines before anything else. Thanks for bringing this to all of us.

[vigsom]

Originally Posted by sarathlal

Changanassery Velankanni Super Express. Mr. Ponnukkuttan could not hide his emotions and social media was filled with his emotional farewell to the machine

Thank You, sarathlal, for bringing this particular bus and the attached emotions up. I've long ago seen a video of another driver on this route, Santosh Kuttan, whose journey with this bus is worth watching. I'm not sure if Santosh is still with this route but do know he still works for KSRTC. I'm a huge fan of those state transport corporation drivers who've been loyal, well mannered and care for their machines. They typically do insane duty hours, drive sub-optimal machines, and lead a simple life. Hats off to them!

https://youtu.be/rYPwVFza8FI

I urge you to watch the above video with headphones on; a virtual ride from Palakkad to Changanassery in the night.

[jeeva]

I can relate to the emotions of Mr. Ponnukuttan.

During my schooling days at Ooty, there was this Hino engine'd erstwhile Cheran bus (now TNSTC) doing its round from Ooty to Calicut. Nobody really knew the name of the driver, but he was loving addressed to as "bhai". The bus was pretty popular because of his clinically neat driving skills and timing. He never used to brake on those curvy roads of Nilgiris, and I still have no clue how he managed it, but the bus was absolutely vibration free. You could only hear the subdued engine humming away. I have later experienced this level of mature driving style only with our ex-servicemen drivers. Come any vacation, I used to stand behind him just to watch him drive and be in awe, looking at the way he used to rev match, shift gears, and work his magic with precise steering inputs. It was such a pleasure to be a passenger in "his" bus. Bhai used to maintain this bus so meticulously that he and his regular passengers used to celebrate the bus's birthday together. Good old days!

Yeah, for some, their machines aren't just another piece of engineering, but a part of their family.

[sarathlal]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

This is a bit weird. Generally KeSRTC rotates it's long distance buses out of service after a certain duration and puts them in local service routes to ensure that the long distance routes have fresh and new buses, and drivers are used to that. Can someone who has more recent knowledge of these things help

Originally Posted by ike

They have increased that duration recently(not sure how much exactly it is now) and I understand both buses in the route (ATC93 & ATC 95) have serviceable life left.
EDIT: the service life is 9 yrs and the bus is 5 yrs & 3 months old.

Ye, as ike mentioned, the duration is now 9 years.

These interstate buses are run under Super Class category and are supposed to be changed after 5 years of service.
Due to lack of buses, this was extended to 7 years and then subsequently to 9 years. So 9 years is the current limit for Super Class category.

In the latest update from KSRTC MD, along with the decision to retain the service, its also being upgraded to Super Deluxe, from Super Express.

Originally Posted by vigsom

I've long ago seen a video of another driver on this route, Santosh Kuttan, whose journey with this bus is worth watching. I'm not sure if Santosh is still with this route but do know he still works for KSRTC. I'm a huge fan of those state transport corporation drivers who've been loyal, well mannered and care for their machines. They typically do insane duty hours, drive sub-optimal machines, and lead a simple life. Hats off to them!

Sure, glad to share the same excitement with the community

Yes, I think Santosh handles till Palakkad and Ponnukkuttan from Palakkad onwards. After seeing so many abandoned public buses left to rot in yards, these kind of folks really are torch bearers on dedication to profession and their passion for driving.

[ike]

Originally Posted by vigsom

I'm not sure if Santosh is still with this route but do know he still works for KSRTC.

Originally Posted by sarathlal

Yes, I think Santosh handles till Palakkad and Ponnukkuttan from Palakkad onwards.

Yes, Santhosh still drives the Velankanni service on the changanassery - Palakkad - Changanassery stretch.

[SJQIL87]

It is impossible to forget a machine you loved and was forced to sell it.
I still remember our blue Alto and my RE Classic 350 which we were forced to sell because of different circumstances.
Only a few Kerala state bus drivers take proper care of these buses. So people like him are worth being appreciated.

[svsantosh]

Number plate 1935 & 1936 are two different different bus pics above.

But I get it, Route #6 town bus in my childhood days will start only if "Driver anna" touched the bus, only he knows when to engage the gear (clutch at times, depends on his left calf). Only he knows when to start braking, where to "stop between stops" to let the conductor to speed up and issue tickets. It was a 25Paisa ticket from Hosur bus stand to my school. Good memories. More than our teachers, our "conductor anna" has seen me (and my friends) grow up over the years.

[NiInJa]

Can totally relate to it. Life is much easier when you love and respect the machine irrespective of its shortcomings or flaws

I have seen a lot of State Transport drivers and conductors in Maharashtra attached to their buses just like him and have massive respect for them. They know their vehicle inside-out and it helps when caught in tricky situations.

[AmarFlying]

The story is so wholesome. Their are certain emotions that cannot really be explained or quantified in any manner. It reminds me about my connection with my Honda Civic. Just calling it 'my' makes me feel happy.

I sold my pre-owned Honda Civic in October 2020 to a close friend. No particular reason other than the ground clearance (which I had mostly taken care off) and the friend offering a great value for it. Than on, last year I bought a pre-owned XUV500 in August of 2021. The XUV is very practical and fulfills all my needs. But somehow, my mind is still stuck onto the Civic. It was my first car. More than that, I loved the design since the time it was launched here. I only bought the car because it looked so great and still does. It did not have any mechanical or electrical flaws. Whenever any minor flaw or squeaks were noted, I took the car to a near-by FNG to get it sorted. He did mention it few times, these things are not needed at the moment but I wanted to make the car as perfect as I could afford. I still miss my car. A lot of enthusiasts would do. But I don't just miss it when I see another Civic, I miss it when I am taking the XUV out of the parking or sitting in it. A lot specially when I drive the XUV. My mind has not really moved on from the Civic yet. I feel like I just drove it yesterday. I remember its smell, its oh-so slight jerk when I put it into drive. On every trip with the XUV, I mention or talk about the Civic multiple times. My mind still thinks about buying the very same car again.