Erratic movement of buses in M’luru to be curbed with GPS soon

Erratic movement of buses in M’luru to be curbed with GPS soon

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, Jan 30, 2018: All private buses in the city will have to be fitted with Global Positioning System (GPS) soon.

The move is to ensure the errant private bus drivers, who are infamously addressed as Formula 1 drivers, to keep a check on their speed as they will be on the radar of the Regional Transport Office (RTO) throughout their trips. The move comes at a time when the complaints of private bus drivers using the unauthorised roads and violating timings at bus shelters are on the rise. The RTO will take up the project in association with the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) under the Smart City project.

G S Hegde, deputy commissioner of transport and in-charge senior RTO, said his office will introduce a centralised vehicle tracking system in its jurisdiction to track the buses.With the introduction of the GPS, the speed at every interval, the route taken and the time taken at the bus shelters will be tracked among other details.

Hedge said the government had passed a resolution in this regard in March 2016. However, the resolution could not be acted upon in the city due to various technical reasons. He said the decks have been cleared now, adding that he raised the the issue with the government during a meet convened in Bengaluru on January 29. "The issue will also be discussed uring the district road safety committee meeting to be held on February 5," he said.

Hedge said a central control room will be set up in the office of the commissioner for transport or the MCC to monitor the movement of all vehicles . The civic body will also provide all technical support.


President, Dakshina Kannada Bus Operators’ Association, said he welcomes the move on behalf of the association. However, he said the RTO needs to ensure that the fitment provided is of superior quality. "We had got all the buses equipped with a GPRS-based tracking system in Udupi over a decade ago. The private bus owners had then spent around a total of Rs 6 - 7 lakhs. In a few months, the systems went out of service. None of us had any clue of the party that supplied the fitment. Hence, we removed the systems from the buses. At least this time, the officials need to ensure that they do it in a manner it is supposed to be done," he said.


He alleged that in such cases, the suppliers usually exert their influence over the RTO and win the bid. Later, they spend only about 20% of the cost involved over the fitment and siphon off the remaining money. "We do not have any issues with the tracking system if the RTO ensures that our money is invested right," he added.