Commuters upset over delay due to long wait time for buses

Thane: The traffic congestion due to the ongoing Mumbai metro route and internal road up-gradation works in various parts of the city has increased the wait and commute time for daily commuters here.
Commuters, especially those travelling to and from the Ghodbunder area complained of a longer waiting and travel time of late, often stretching beyond 90 minutes, for a journey that could otherwise be wound up in 30 minutes. While few commuters have pre-poned their daily schedules to absorb the delays, others end up shelling out a premium for travelling by fleet cabs or autos that can snake through alternative routes faster.
“There are less frequency of buses to and from Ghodbunder road of late. We have to stand in the queue for hours together while services to other city areas including Vrindavan and Pawar Nagar are operating at frequent intervals,” complained a commuter, Vaibhav Sawant.
Regulars complained that most of the times buses are waiting empty on the satis deck but the officials refuse to operate them on busy corridors and reduce the waiting for the passengers. Another daily passener said his travelling budget has increased substantially thanks to the frequent hiring of fleet cabs to travel to and from work.
Meanwhile, the transport undertaking admitted the metro and road works was affecting bus schedules and eating into their schedules. “The primary reason for the drop in trips is the slow movement of traffic on the Ghodbunder and Eastern Express Highway stretches majorly due to the ongoing metro works and road and infrastructure development works in other parts of the city,” said a senior official from the Thane transport undertaking.
When contacted, Bhalchandra Behere, transport manager at the TMT assured to look in the issue. “I will pay a random visit to the Satis bus station and ensure the buses don't lie idle. We may rework few schedules and routes of few services to ensure trips are optimised and inconvenience to passengers is minimized,” he said.