With the State government relaxing the lockdown norms, the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) is set to operate its buses from Tuesday, with safeguards that would help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Wearing of masks will be mandatory for passengers. Drivers and conductors will have to wear masks and gloves. Conductors will also provide hand sanitisers to passengers before issuing the tickets. The buses will be disinfected periodically.
The Coimbatore Division of TNSTC will operate 343 town buses and 63 mofussil buses from Tuesday, officials said on Monday. These buses constitute only 50 % of the total fleet in the district. The buses, however, will be operated only within Coimbatore district and there will be no inter-district services.
To avoid crowding this time, there will be 100 buses more than the number operated for a month from June 1, before public transport was suspended again as part of the lockdown. Around 30 passengers will be allowed to travel on each bus, the officials said.
The TNSTC would operate 175 buses initially. On Monday, 200 buses at the depots were kept ready for operations within the district from Tuesday. TNSTC officials said 130 town buses and 45 mofussil buses will be operated.
Private bus operators said they would not operate buses from Tuesday as it would not be viable. They wanted to operate buses to other districts also with full occupancy. Of the total 135 mini-buses in the district, 50% are expected to be operated.
Also, the premises of the Corporation’s Central Bus Stand at Erode, bus stands at Bhavani, Perundurai, Sathyamangalam and Gobichettipalayam were cleaned and kept ready.
The Salem Division of the TNSTC, which covers Salem, Namakkal, Krishnagiri and Dharmapuri districts, plans to operate minimal services, out of the total fleet of 1900 buses as intra-district services. A senior official said the number of buses would be increased depending on passenger demand. Officials said drivers and conductors had been provided with immunity building concoction, apart from masks, gloves and sanitisers.
The TNSTC will operate 30 % of the services in Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri and Hosur. Accordingly, 285 buses, out of a fleet of 950, will be operated from Tuesday.
A TNSTC official told The Hindu that the number of passengers per bus will be only 30 % of the total number of seats, in order to ensure physical distancing.