With a fleet of 7,067 buses, Bengaluru has the largest number of public sector buses between Indian cities, followed by Chennai, Mumbai and Delhi. Karnataka leads at the state level, operating 26,054 buses, which is transferred by 3.81 buses to 1,000 people. According to the Minister of Transport Ramalinga Reddy, this is ahead of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
There are up to 18,987 buses with the exception of 7,067 buses operating in Bengalur.
The Minister made these notes in the middle of the ongoing calls from Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya, former infosys CFO TV Mohandas Pai, and co -founder Yulu RK Misra, who suggested that the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) should be privatized.
Mr. Reddy firmly rejected these proposals and described them as “commercially motivated” and unlike the public interest. “Karnataka and Bengaluru lead the country in the number of buses, passenger riders and the quality of service. Those who defend privatization have confirmed interests and do not think about the prosperity,” he said.
3.81 buses per 1,000 people
According to Mr. Reddy, BMTC operates 7,067 buses in Bengalur, of which 1,799 electric buses, which supply almost 48 Lakh passengers every day, the highest rider for any public transport system in India. “Chennai’s Metropolitan Transport Corporation follows with 3,651 buses (230 electric), around 34 lamp passengers a day. Mumbai’s Brihanmumbai Electricity Delivery and Transport Company (best) operates 3,794 buses, including 1 121 electric and 2.340 vehicles. which every day serves 24 passengers.
“These data themselves show how BMTC effectively serve people Bengaluru. Now some people want to privatize this system so that private organizations can make profits. Government focus is on service, not profit,” Reddy added.
The Minister also emphasized the dominance of Karnataka in public transport throughout India. “While the national average is 1.2 buses per 1,000 people, Karnataka provides 3.81 buses per 1,000 people. This clearly reflects our commitment to public mobility,” he said.
The state operates 26,054 buses through its four corporations, namely Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), North West Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKrtc).
Mr. Reddy’s comparison from other countries said that Tamil Nadu has 20 912 buses (2.70 per 1,000 people), Maharashtra 16 900 (1,32), Uttar Pradesh 13,031 (0.54) and Andhra Pradesh 11 1111 (2.07). “In each parameter there is the number of buses, passengers and the reliability of Karnataka services first,” he said.
Feasible options
The Minister remembered the previous efforts to improve urban roads and said that during the possession of the former main Minister of SM Krishna, projects of road expansion were launched to reduce traffic jams. “These road expansion projects have helped to alleviate traffic. Unfortunately, later governments did not continue. Now, with limited funds and high cost of compensating land, road expansion has become difficult,” Mr. Reddy explained.
As an example, Andhra Pradesh quoted, he said that years ago, when the main Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu introduced extensive projects to expand the road expansion, which continued the subsequent governments, the operation was managed effectively. “In Karnataka, the lack of continuity in these projects has deteriorated overload,” he added.
Published – October 14, 2025 20:24
