For the past three occasions that I have arrived at Bengaluru International Airport at 1 am, I have had a major problem, because the Vayu Vajra bus services now start only at 4 am, and the earler services have been withdrawn.
Earlier, the withdrawal was not even showing up on the BMTC Vayu Vajra website, but now, here is the updated schedule for the bus that I take (which actually stops at my front gate on the way to the KuVemPu, or BTM Layout, Bus Terminal).
BIAS-12: Kuvempunagara Btm Layout – Bangalore International Airport / Bengaluru International Airport
Departure from Kuvempunagara Btm Layout
00:55, 04:30, 05:45, 06:20, 07:40, 08:20, 09:00, 09:40, 10:20 10:20, 10:55, 12:15, 13:35, 14:15, 17:05, 17:45, 18:05, 18:40, 19:40, 21:00, 21:40, 22:20, 23:00, 23:30, 23:55
Departure from Bangalore International Airport / Bengaluru International Airport
04:00, 04:30, 05:40, 06:15, 06:55, 07:35, 07:50, 08:25, 09:45, 11:05, 11:45, 15:00, 15:40, 16:00, 16:35, 17:10, 18:30, 19:20, 20:15, 20:35, 20:55, 21:45, 23:05, 23:45
The Vayu Vajra is a bus service especially dedicated to passengers commuting to and from the airport. And the Air France flight arriving from Paris at 1 am has been a fixture for the past several years.
This being the case, why must passengers arriving by this flight wait for at least 3 hours to get a bus? When I came out and enquired at 2 am on the morning of November 7th, I was given wrong information at the desk, that the service would start only at 5 am. I was told that “there is no demand” and therefore the service has been withdrawn.
The bus service is a great boon for people like me…older people, who are hesitant to travel alone by cab at night, especially given the distance to the city. For me, it would be much safer to use the bus. But in its greatness, BMTC, knowing fully well that there is a flight coming in at that time, has withdrawn the service.
If there is no service, how will there be a demand for it? The word demand, then, can only be applied to the exorbitant charges of the airport taxis, especially when they see an older lady alone with luggage. Each time, I take a cab, hoping that the brand-name will see me home safely.
Why can there not be a bus service at, say, 2 or 2.30am, for the passengers who arrive by the Air France flight at 1 am?
It is a great pity that the Vayu Vajra services by a government organisation are not consumer-friendly, but only have an eye on the revenue.
BMTC, be more aware of your conumers’ needs, and don’t withdraw services that are very useful to us in the name of profits!