The vacation boom has certainly gone well for private bus operators. More than 90 per cent of buses have been booked until mid-June just before schools and colleges begin. 37,000 inter-city buses are plying to and from Mumbai.
This respite for the private bus operators and the transport industry has come almost after 2.5 years since the Covid restrictions have been eased. Sources said that tourists are still going places and it's not that they are returning to Mumbai.
"The demand for our private buses has crossed 90 per cent of our pre-Covid times. Even still, our buses are running full. One of the primary reasons is the expensive flight tickets and long-distance trains running full," said a private bus operator and member of Mumbai Bus Chalak Malak Sanghatana.
The Free Press Journal had reported about expectations of a 'happy summer vacation' for bus operators earlier this March. The operators have achieved well over 65 per cent of the total demand out of the 37,000 odd buses that operate in Mumbai and its Metropolitan Region (MMR) back then. This has now surpassed 90 per cent demand for their buses.
Over the past few weeks, the number of passengers travelling on intercity buses has gone up. Some of the preferred destinations from Mumbai are Goa, Bengaluru, Nashik, Udaipur, Pune, Hyderabad, parts of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh etc. The demand from passengers is coming in and as trains are running full, people are moving to intercity buses.
The remaining 8-10 per cent of the buses are those ferrying office goers or companies booking private buses for their employees, school buses and those which is especially for foreign tourists.
The sector of foreign tourists hasn't recovered yet and so have the private offices and companies are opting for private buses. The fares of buses range from Rs 700 to Rs 2000 or more depending on the type of bus, air-conditioned or non-AC, sleeper or seater and the distance.
