Bhubaneswar: Passengers of city buses have alleged that they face several challenges daily, despite the addition of more vehicles and govt plans to add 400 more e-buses to the existing fleet.
Many passengers said overcrowding remains a big problem, leading to hazardous situations such as doors closing on them, buses dropping them off in the middle of the road or not stopping at designated bus stops.“Through an app, we have an idea at which square a bus will arrive, but we don’t understand where exactly we should stand and where the bus will stop. Somebody new to the city will get confused,” said Mukti Ranjan of Jharsuguda, who works in Bhubaneswar.
An elderly commuter claimed that in some buses, ‘senior citizen’ signs were torn and students often fail to give up their seats for them. Another passenger said an e-bus stopped three times at night and all its lights were turned off, causing delays.
Sidra Jamal, a student of Utkal Law University and regular Mo Bus traveller, highlighted issues such as spitting on windows and littering on buses. Jitendra Pradhan, a construction worker, said many buses run late, making it difficult for him to reach his workplace on time.
A spokesperson of Capital Region Urban Transport (Crut) said priority would be given to the existing routes to ensure more footfall and demand rather than expansion. “Crut gives utmost priority to grievances and tries to attend to them within half an hour. The crew is given mandatory training and briefed every morning before the bus services start. If any crew member is found at fault, serious actions are taken against them. However, problems arise from both crew members and commuters,” added the spokesperson.
The spokesperson further said the construction of 200 new bus shelters and 250 bus poles have been proposed in the capital region to help commuters know where to wait for the buses.
“Our agency is also repairing damaged bus stops. Crut plans to create exclusive electric depots at Gadakana, Pokhariput and Naraj in Cuttack while also encouraging commuters to go digital,” the official said.
The previous Naveen Patnaik govt introduced Mo Bus service in 2018.

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