BMTC’s Vayu Vajra airport buses empty due to IndiGo crisis, suffers Rs 50 lakh loss in a week

BENGALURU: The spillover effect of the IndiGo Airlines crisis not only affected passengers, but also BMTC’s Vayu Vajra Volvo fleet, which are parked empty at the Majestic bus stand and also at Kempegowda International Airport.

It is said that filling 35 seats on a single Vayu Vajra Volvo bus has become difficult now as the number of passengers on airport buses is decreasing every day. Previously, 156 buses used to operate daily to Kempegowda International Airport and made 1,150 trips. About 10,000 passengers used to travel daily, but due to the IndiGo crisis, the daily passenger count has dropped by 3,000-4,000.

Even with the drop in passenger numbers, BMTC has not reduced the number of trips. The transport utility is losing lakhs of rupees every day and in one week, the loss is about Rs 50 lakh.

The IndiGo flight crisis started on December 1, and even now the daily passenger numbers on airport buses remain low. However, despite the loss, BMTC says it has not reduced the number of buses or trips as passengers should not be inconvenienced.