The bus priority lane was originally launched in 2019 with a large fanfare between Kr Puram and Silk Board Junction. However, it was interrupted after BMRCL removed bollards that marked a dedicated strip with a bus to create a way for the construction of the metro pillar | Photo Credit: File Photos
Since January 2026, the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) will restore the bus priority lane between Marathhahalli and Silk Board Junction, Ramacandran R., CEO of BMTC, announced on Thursday.
The bus priority lane was originally launched in 2019 with a large fanfare between Kr Puram and Silk Board Junction. However, it was interrupted after the BMRCL removed the rays that marked the dedicated lane with the bus to form a metro pillar. “We had to suspend the bus priority lane for the construction of the metro. We will restart it in January,” Mr. Ramacandran said. He spoke at Enroute: Mobility-As-A-Service Challenge, organized World Resources Institute and discuss how BMTC plans to work with BMRCL to offer trouble-free commuting in the city.
While he confirmed the rediscovery of the lane, he did not specify whether the entire section would be reopened. The bus priority has gained significant popularity among the daily commuters and faced considerable resistance when it was closed.
Mr. Ramacandran also spoke of several new initiatives that BMTC implemented, emphasizing the shift of the organization towards the approach based on the data to improve the commute experience. He said BMTC was developing digital transport infrastructure and introducing smart cards that will be compatible with electronic tickets for tickets, along with the Smart cards of Shakti. “We are planning to install automatic passenger counting systems along with automatic food collection systems to allow immediate transit in the city,” Ramacandran said.
He noted that the main challenge in the next five years is the management of urban transport and operation. “BMTC serves more than 45 passengers and BMRCL sees around 8.5 lakh commuting daily, a total of approximately 55 public transport users are every day. The total population of the city is about 1.5 crore,” he said.
On the basis of comparison with Delhi, he noted that Delhi benefits from several transport options, including two corporations that, in addition to the metro and suburban transit routes, operate a total of 10,000 buses. On the other hand, Bengaluru largely depends on BMTC and BMRCL, while BMTC operates a fleet of approximately 6,888 buses.
Mr. Ramacandran acknowledged that Bengaluru needed a larger fleet to meet the growing demand. BMTC has accepted the data based on data. The aim is to use data to create a digital shipping magazine and integrate all ways of transport to improve the overall commute experience, he said.
Published – 10 July 2025 21:46
