Bengaluru: Commuters along Sarjapur Road want more frequent, comfortable and reliable bus services, with nearly three-fourths willing to pay a premium fare for them, according to a survey report released in Oct.Conducted by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) and Save Our Sarjapur, the SORT Bengaluru–BMTC Sarjapur Mobility Survey aims to use data-driven insights to encourage greater BMTC adoption among commuters in traffic-congested areas of south-east Bengaluru. The findings assume added significance as construction of the Sarjapur Road Metro line is likely to begin within a year, potentially worsening congestion.Of the 400 respondents surveyed, 73.1% said they would be willing to pay a premium for a corporate-style bus service offering air-conditioning, comfortable seating, Wi-Fi, fixed schedules and pre-booking.The report lists sample issues which include a bus application that does not track buses, missing frequency, unreliability and a lack of AC buses. It also notes the missing transfer between the Bellandur/Iblur junction on ORR and Bellandur Gate on Sarjapur Road, which forces a 1-km walk. Other complaints were confusion over bus stops on Haralur Road.Airport connectivity also drew strong interest. Of 382 respondents, 91.9% would consider a premium KIA bus to the airport and 82.2% from it. The report recommends a pre-booking feature and starting with one bus. It proposes pilots for Hosa Road and Haralur Road via ORR, and for Muthanallur-Dommasandra.Mukund Kumar from Save Our Sarjapura (SOS) said: “We have presented the summary of the survey to senior officials at BMTC, who have been receptive to the idea and have expressed keenness to work with us.”Joy VR, co-founder, Sarjapura Residents Welfare Association (SRWA), said: “Real-time tracking of buses towards Sarjapur is currently unavailable. Maintaining proper intervals between buses and introducing real-time tracking would help commuters.”Will they pay for comfort?Yes to AC, a seat, WiFi, fixed timings and pre-booking: 73.1%Maybe: 19.1%What would tip the scale: a high probability of a seatOffice-goers rule the roadsTravel five days a week: 43%Travel three days a week: 30.2%Travel four days a week: 15.3%Travel two days a week: 10.9%The morning rushOut the door between 8 am and 9 am: 36.3%Out the door between 7 am and 8 am: 30.5%Early birds, between 6 am and 7 am: 1.5%The evening dashHead home between 4 pm and 5 pm: 22.9%Head home between 5 pm and 6 pm: 22.9%Leave early, between 3 pm and 4 pm: 19.5%Leave between 6 pm and 7 pm: 16.3%Box: Where the journey beginsHosa Road/Kasavanahalli: 37.6%Haralur Road: 25.6%Sarjapura Road (Iblur): 10.2%Chandapura-Dommasandra Road: 7.6%Dommasandra-Sarjapur: 7.1%Where the journey endsORR, Iblur to Marathahalli: 29.8%ORR, beyond Marathahalli: 18.5%CBD/Koramangala: 11.7%Whitefield: 10.7%Electronics City: 9.5%Banashankari-HSR: 8.3%Tech parks on the map (respondents)Prestige Tech Park: 24Ecospace: 23Bagmane Tech Park: 21Embassy Tech Village: 16Manyata Tech Park: 11The missing link: access to EcoWorld is an issue, and internal access to other tech parks could widen coverageWhat will get them on the bus?Top draw, with the most rank-1 votes: frequencyAlso on the list: AC buses, bus-app tracking, fewer connections and ticketing easeRounding it out: a stop within 300 m, easy transfers, and ergonomic shelters and skywalksKey recommendationsPremium buses with a high probability of a seat, on four pilot routesFlat fares of Rs 100, Rs 150 and Rs 200 by distanceHigh-frequency AC buses to IblurKIA pre-booking and a one-bus pilotPay by the kilometreShort hops, under 10 km: Rs 100Mid-range, 10-20 km: Rs 150Long haul, above 20 km: Rs 200Source: BMTC-Sarjapura Road Survey
