BENGALURU: Reduced air traffic at Kempegowda International Airport due to the pandemic has adversely affected Vayu Vajra bus services, bringing down daily trips from around 800 per day to just 180 now.

Airports Authority of India figures show air traffic at KIA nosedived by 94% in April-June, compared to the corresponding period last year, with just 4.5 lakh passengers this year. This forced the BMTC to run only 23 of these buses as against 123 before the pandemic struck. Revenues too went down, from Rs 30 lakh per day to Rs 4 lakh now, said a top BMTC official.

Vayu Vajra services were profitable for BMTC due to the high ticket price. Minimum fare on the air-conditioned Volvo buses is Rs 120 while the maximum is Rs 350 depending on the boarding point. Currently, no buses operate post midnight, with the first service beginning at noon and the last one at 11.35 pm.

“We are running only from five areas to and from airport presently: Electronics City, Kempegowda Bus Station, Banashankari, HSR Layout and Mysuru Road. Patronage has been quite poor due to non-resumption of regular flight operations. It has picked up in August,” the official said.

Asked whether drivers feared transporting flyers from the airport due to fear, the official said that precautions were taken and safety gear made available to drivers to make them feel safe while carrying out their duty. Apart from taking precautions like mandatory masks due to the pandemic, buses have also adjusted the AC temperature from the previous 22 degrees to 24 degrees as a precaution in the past few months, he added.