[silversteed]

Originally Posted by sbkumar

Incidentally my wife traveled on this bus. From the pics ,I am not able to conclude if he was the same driver who was at the wheels when it arrived at Indiranagar before proceeding to Madiwala. To be honest I couldn't guess he was drunk after the brief interaction I had, if he was the same guy.

Some bus operators have "city drivers", who take the bus from the starting point such as Kalasipalayam, Marathahalli, etc., and then the main driver gets in at Madiwala, Bommanahalli, Mekhri Circle, etc. Similarly, in Chennai, one driver takes the bus from Koyambedu/Central/Adyar etc till Poonamallee (I think) from where the other driver gets behind the wheel.

After multiple delays, they finally started the bus pretty late. According to her it was around 3 already when they were in Hosur, though I am not sure if that's the case and don't want to think that's the case as it reached chennai by 6.30 in the morning.

Once, a Roadlink Volvo dropped me in front of Guindy railway station at 3:40am, after leaving Madiwala at 11 o'clock in the night. I don't want to think too much about that trip, just like you...

[Jaggu]

Opted for Kallada Mercedes sleeper for BLR>TVM>BLR trip.

Onward was a revelation, bus started about 10-15 mts late from Madiwala, noticed that the driver was in no hurry and pottering around mostly with small bursts to overtake and all. Was about to doze off when the bus passed hosur. That is when i noticed that the bus was actually stopping and driver jumping out for a nature call. In about 2 min he runs back and switch the vehicle off completely. Another 1 min and a hefty looking helper walks in and announces that the bus has broken down and we need to board the alternate vehicle waiting behind.

I felt something amiss, how can they coordinate to such a perfect switch over if its a random breakdown?? Well middle of the night and middle of nowhere one does not have much options. But an old lady decided to stay back after calling up her relative, rest of us jumped into the volvo sleeper to TVM. Then it struck me, it cannot be coincidence that this was Monday and sleeper was half empty and the volvo semi sleeper also had seats to accommodate all of us?!! Worst part was the new bus driver, he was an arrogant chap getting into argument with other passengers at almost all the short breaks and yapping out loud all night.

Overheard the crew giving excuse that turbo of the merc broke down to others at various in between points. Yeah right!!!

And after few days spent in TVM, Thu evening i report in to see the exact same Merc sleeper bus which broke down waiting, same driver also. Only difference this time he had a cleaner boy who was indeed preparing for the long trip unlike what we saw for onward journey. I was tensed the first hour, praying that they wont pull the same trick. Lucky for me the bus was full this time around.

About the bus, well its got power point and reading lights for each bunk, so pretty good stuff. AC was bone chilling that i was wearing a jacket and blanket, still waking up on and off!

Left a pathetic feedback at Redbus site where i booked, for what it is worth.

[coolclouds]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Opted for Kallada Mercedes sleeper for BLR>TVM>BLR trip.

Onward was a revelation, bus started about 10-15 mts late from Madiwala, noticed that the driver was in no hurry and pottering around mostly with small bursts to overtake and all. Was about to doze off when the bus passed hosur. That is when i noticed that the bus was actually stopping and driver jumping out for a nature call. In about 2 min he runs back and switch the vehicle off completely. Another 1 min and a hefty looking helper walks in and announces that the bus has broken down and we need to board the alternate vehicle waiting behind.

Some people say Kallada got majority of services and getting an alternate arrangement during a breakdown is a plus point. But I feel most of these breakdowns are not real for these large fleet operators.

They once demanded me to vacate my Cochin seat for a Trivandrum passenger, that too after travelling for 30 mins. They offered me a seat on another service leaving after three hours !!

[TKMCE]

Originally Posted by odyssey045

Planning on taking a volvo to mumbai. Wondering which one to take.. Have to go till Andheri . Looks like the KSRTC volvos don't go that far.

Would it be possible to take a evening bus that reaches Mumbai before noon. Also, do these buses have regular breaks (atleast once every 4 hours) or they stop only for dinner and breakfast.

KSRTC has four services to Mumbai, two of them terminate at Mumbai Central and two of them terminate at Borivili. The Borivili services drop you off at Andheri. Their 5 PM service should drop you off around 12.30 at Andheri. Dont remember the exact dropping point - should be either Bisleri Junction or down the flyover at Gundavli.

Almost all operators have some services terminating at Borivili and all these services without exception have drop off/pick up points at Andheri, mostly near the Neetha office near the Chakala Junction (KSRTC is at Bisleri). I used VRL from Andheri to Bangalore and I found their services perfectly acceptable. The advantage with these guys is that they are big player on the route and especially after Belgaum they do have spare buses stationed. Mumbai Bangalore is a long route and break downs do happen. My bus broke down - ( real- not imaginary) and we had a spare B9R within an hour.

SRS is another major operator with services to as far as Rajkot and Jodhpur which passess via Mumbai but I suggest you stick to their Mumbai terminating services most of which have Borivili as the last stop. SRS 1930 service shows an arrival time of 11 15 at Andheri and even if it is delayed by an hour it should serve your purpose. they are much faster than KSRTC but if your prefer more stops stick to KSRTC.


Other major operators are Neeta and Sharma and they also have multiple services but I would suggest you stick to KSRTC, VRL or SRS. Avoid operators like Kesineni or Seabird who are major operators but not between Bangalore and Mumbai where they have limited services.


And one last word- may of the operators waste time at Pune trying to fill empty seats. So if you dont want this hassle stick to KSRTC or VRL (not too sure about SRS). Neetha is to be avoided for this reason as they sell Pune Mumbai tickets on long distances buses also on an "as available" basis.

[odyssey045]

I have booked in SRS after looking at their large number of service fleet operating between these two cities like you mentioned. I myself have faced breakdown issues twice while travelling in KSRTC to chennai and once they managed to accomodate people in other buses while another time, they had to get a new bus from the depot all the way to krishnagiri.

The other thing i have seen with KSRTC (atleast on chennai route) is that they don't go fast and maintain constant speeds probably to maintain fuel economy. While this works out fine for short distances like chennai <-> bangalore, it would cause a lot of discomfort for long distance routes. But i like their cleanliness, punctuality and the attitude towards their customers.

[bluestraveller]

I have made multiple Bangalore - Pune trips since June of 2013, averaging about 1-2 trips/Month. I haven't looked beyond the KSRTC Club Class. The ride is super comfy, the crew seem to get better with each trip and their style of driving is absolutely brilliant when you plan to sleep the night.

My preference is the 6:00 pm departure (both Pune and Bangalore), has in seat entertainment, so watch T.V till about 11:00 and you can get some decent shut-eye afterwards.

They will introduce the Superia to Mumbai from April 15 (I think its an afternoon departure) and you get in-seat entertainment and an "emergency" toilet. Have no clue if it would go to Andheri. They do take 14 hours to get to Pune. If you are not on a tight schedule but looking for the most comfortable ride in a semi-sleeper volvo.. nothing comes close to the KSRTC club class.

[motorsan]

Originally Posted by binaiks

About the numbers - I think they should be getting RS779 onwards - hope they give these buses some good looking numbers.

What is the significance of the two (or three) alphabets before the numbers in KeSRTC buses? I used to think they indicate the body shop at where the bus body was built, but not so sure anymore.

[sbkumar]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Opted for Kallada Mercedes sleeper for BLR>TVM>BLR trip.

Onward was a revelation, bus started about 10-15 mts late from Madiwala, noticed that the driver was in no hurry and pottering around mostly with small bursts to overtake and all. Was about to doze off when the bus passed hosur. That is when i noticed that the bus was actually stopping and driver jumping out for a nature call. In about 2 min he runs back and switch the vehicle off completely. Another 1 min and a hefty looking helper walks in and announces that the bus has broken down and we need to board the alternate vehicle waiting behind.

This is quite a revelation. I have faced this "bus break down" drama a lot on the route I frequent ( BLR-NGL-TVM). This has been done by operators with mutliple services ( KPN & SRS) on the same route. But most of the time they do this before boarding. The typical mode of operation is they call/text about 30 mins before the departure time and give some excuse that they can think of( a/c not working, engine problem) and they say they have accommodated in another bus. Services like Bharathi, ABT actually get seats in some other services too in case they don't have multiple buses plying the same route. I wish we have option to report such practices.

[binaiks]

Originally Posted by motorsan

What is the significance of the two (or three) alphabets before the numbers in KeSRTC buses? I used to think they indicate the body shop at where the bus body was built, but not so sure anymore.

The number is called a "Bonnet Number" by KSRTC. The alphabets represent a "series". Lets take an example - RSC680. In this "RS" is the series, "C" stands for the workshop which built it, and its the 680th bus in RS series.

"RS" is made from alphabets in the word "TRANSPORT". The first buses were numbered from T01 to T999, then R01 to R999, A01 to A999, so on till they reached "P999". Then "TR01 to TR999" came.. so on, and now reached RS.

The workshops are -
C - Central Works, Trivandrum (Pappanamcode)
M - Regional Works (RW), Mavelikara
A - RW, Aluva
E - RW, Edappal
K - RW, Kozhikode

Buses ready built from outside will not have the third alphabet. JnNURM buses use a different system - They are numbered as "JNT" or "JNK" -where JN stands for JnNURM, and T for Trivandrum and K for Kochi.

Hope its clear.

[rejoycjohn]

Originally Posted by TKMCE

KSRTC has four services to Mumbai, two of them terminate at Mumbai Central and two of them terminate at Borivili.

Originally Posted by odyssey045

I have booked in SRS after looking at their large number of service fleet operating between these two cities like you mentioned. I myself have faced breakdown issues twice while travelling in KSRTC to chennai

Originally Posted by bluestraveller

I have made multiple Bangalore - Pune trips since June of 2013, averaging about 1-2 trips/Month. I haven't looked beyond the KSRTC Club Class.

Over the past 8 months , I have done a lot of trips between Pune - Bangalore and Pune - Mysore all in KaSRTC services. Trust me they are the best in terms of punctuality / customer service / cleanliness. Normally I book the bus that starts from Mumbai so that I can board from Wakad. Previously they did not have a boarding point in Wakad, however the crew calls me when they reach the bypass and then pick me up from under the bridge. They issue a ticket for this extra distance sometimes, but it depends on the crew. This is anyway better than catching an auto and going to Katraj / Swargate. KSRTC also sends you a SMS with the details of the bus and crew member contact numbers 10 minutes before leaving. The drivers also take good care of the bus and I have never seen them driving rashly in the highways.

Once I saw a customer who missed his bus from Bangalore, called the crew and they asked the customer to catch the next bus towards NH 4 and he caught up with us while we were having the dinner break in the outskirts of Bangalore.

I even remember the crew mentioning that there is really a good process to attend the complaints and concerns raised by the customers of KSRTC.

I have seen SRS B11 R buses plying between this route, and they claim it as " Asia's Longest Bus ". Their reviews also have been good, we will wait for a review from you after the journey. Bon Voyage

[autotranny]

Read a newspaper report that an over speeding Kallada Travels bus rammed into a car in Alappuzha district of Kerala, killing all 5 occupants of the car.

The newspaper reports this was a Kollam bound bus belonging to Kallada Air Travels (whatever that is), but my guess is that it was the B'lore-Kollam B11R of Suresh Kallada.

The pics of the car show that it never stood anychance in front of the monster. Kallada has to be really careful of public outrage in that route now. Beware of flying stones.

[TKMCE]

Extensive coverage of the above accident in Malayala Manorama online edition of 4 April (Alleppy Edition). Multi Axle of Volvo of "Kallada Travels" bound for Kollam. Accident happened at 12.30 near Harippad. Bus estimated to travel at around 100 Km per hour. Was rashly overtaking a KeSRTC bus when collision happened Car driver saw the monster coming and had parked the vehicle to the side but bus still rammed into it. Bus stopped nearly 250 metres further down after the impact. One small child who was thrown off in the impact and survived with head injuries.

Report also mentions that the bus did not have a Speed Governor and it was Karnataka registered and that it it was the same operator who was fined for speeding at 154 km per hour a few months back.

[silversteed]

Travelled to Palakkad and back, for the election in Kerala. Had booked tickets in the 2100-Bangalore-Palakkad and 2100-Palakkad-Bangalore Super Deluxe services for Wednesday and Thursday respectively.

Onward:
Madiwala - 2156hrs arr, 2200hrs dep (40mins behind schedule)
Shoolagiri - 2300hrs arr, 2335hrs dep (dinner break)
Walayar - 0445hrs arr, 0525hrs dep (Traffic jam, thanks to the rigorous checking)
Palakkad depot - 0610hrs arr (On time)
The bus was packed to capacity after the E-city pick-up point.

Return:
Palakkad depot - 0910hrs dep (10min behind schedule, waited for a reserved passenger)
Salem bus stand - 0100hrs arr, 0130hrs dep
Electronic City - 0420hrs arr, 0422hrs dep
Silk Board - 0445hrs arr, 0446hrs dep
There were 2 vacant seats when the bus left Palakkad, and 3 people got down at Salem. For a weekday, this is excellent load.

The bus, RSC697 (KL-15-A-197) is from the new lot of Super Deluxe airbuses built by the Central Workshop, TVM. Though the Palakkad depot personnel have adorned it with flashy lighting and stickers, the body and seats scream out cost cutting. No complaints with the engine noise or performance (it's an AL Viking 160hp with rear air suspension and front Weveler suspension). Most of the seats have the reclining mechanism damaged. The bus is only a few months old, and it has to last for 5 years, such crappy seats are not going to do any good. There are body rattles each time the bus goes over a slightly uneven patch. I think, the body garage has done away with not using enough wood or cushioning material between the body panels and the frame. Some seats had the footrest already broken. Most of the seats had the map-pockets missing. The crew said those things just break off, so they stopped mending them.

I think it's high time the KSRTC starts ordering Fully Built Vehicles, or getting the body done by reputed body garages like Irizar-TVS, SMK, Veera etc. for such premium services.

[binaiks]

Originally Posted by silversteed

The bus, RSC697 (KL-15-A-197) is from the new lot of Super Deluxe airbuses built by the Central Workshop, TVM. Though the Palakkad depot personnel have adorned it with flashy lighting and stickers, the body and seats scream out cost cutting. No complaints with the engine noise or performance (it's an AL Viking 160hp with rear air suspension and front Weveler suspension). Most of the seats have the reclining mechanism damaged. The bus is only a few months old, and it has to last for 5 years, such crappy seats are not going to do any good. There are body rattles each time the bus goes over a slightly uneven patch. I think, the body garage has done away with not using enough wood or cushioning material between the body panels and the frame. Some seats had the footrest already broken. Most of the seats had the map-pockets missing. The crew said those things just break off, so they stopped mending them.

This time KeSRTC was under tremendous pressure to finish work and deliver the buses - because, like every decision, the decision to buy these were taken at the last moment, and they did not bother ordering the body building materials till the chassis was delivered. The end result was the work took a long time, and by then the existing buses overaged - they were put on "life support" by means of a Government Order extending their permits by 3 months.

Central Works, Pappanamcode does not build great bodies anytime, but this time it was awful. Some depots worked on the body and repaired the rattles (what little they could do).

About the seats - "already" damaged is a wrong term. The seats are already 5+ years old! They are old Globus seats, refurbished and fitted into these buses! Only the latest Deluxes (TATA ones) got some new seats (that too not all of them). The upholstery was done by Central Works itself.

[silversteed]

Originally Posted by binaiks

About the seats - "already" damaged is a wrong term. The seats are already 5+ years old! They are old Globus seats, refurbished and fitted into these buses! Only the latest Deluxes (TATA ones) got some new seats (that too not all of them). The upholstery was done by Central Works itself.

I've travelled in the Globus mobile freezer rattletraps only a few times. Those seats were never comfortable. Do you have any idea what happened to the seats in the decommissioned Super Deluxe buses? Those seats were far better.