HYDERABAD: Rise in Covid-19 cases throughout Telangana state has manifested by way of decreasing numbers of people commuting using state road transport corporation buses, whether on its district or city bus services.
This mainly follows TSRTC staff, including conductors and drivers, adhering to the state-controlled corporation’s dictum of “No Mask No Journey”. On its part, RTC has also started a special campaign to inoculate its staff above 45 years against the virus.
Incidentally, the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation had resumed it services from May 19 onwards last year, as part of the nationwide lockdown. This move, surprisingly, led to RTC busses soon regaining 80 percent of its commuters in rural services and 75 per cent in urban services, though after schools, colleges and commercial establishments restarted functioning.
According to corporation’s chief traffic manager Jeevan Prasad, “There has been almost five per cent drop in passengers in the past few days after Coronavirus has become resurgent in the state. Field mangers have been asked to be on high alert. Further, all busses are being sanitised on a regular basis, apart from creating awareness about safe journey environment among passengers.”
“Schools and colleges are not functioning. That could be another reason for drop in passenger traffic,” he pointed out.
