Bengaluru-Ernakulam Vande Bharat delays have disrupted Onam travel between Bengaluru and Kerala for three consecutive days. To help handle the heavy festive demand, Kerala RTC has added temporary interstate services using privately leased air-conditioned buses.

Bengaluru–Ernakulam Vande Bharat Express at Palakkad Junction
Archive photo of the Bengaluru–Ernakulam Vande Bharat Express at Palakkad Junction. Photo: Vijayanrajapuram / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

Kerala RTC adds extra buses for Onam travel

The additional buses are operating to Thiruvananthapuram, Alappuzha and Kozhikode. Kerala RTC has also scheduled return services from Kerala to Bengaluru in the coming days for passengers travelling back after Onam.

The corporation had invited bids to hire 63 air-conditioned buses under a six-month wet-lease arrangement. Private operators will provide the drivers and maintain the vehicles, while Kerala RTC will supply its own conductors.

Operating under Kerala RTC branding, the leased air-conditioned buses must be properly maintained and less than five years old.

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Bengaluru-Ernakulam Vande Bharat delays continue

The extra road services come as delays continue on the Bengaluru-Ernakulam Vande Bharat route. On Uthradam, the train was due to leave Bengaluru early in the morning but departed at 8:03 am, nearly three hours late. It reached Ernakulam at 5:08 pm.

The repeated delays have frustrated commuters and Onam travellers who chose the premium train for faster travel.

Railway authorities said the operational issues responsible for the delays had been addressed, and the Bengaluru-Ernakulam Vande Bharat was expected to return to its regular schedule from Thursday.

Kerala RTC’s temporary interstate services give passengers another travel option during one of Kerala’s busiest travel periods. Demand between Bengaluru and Kerala is particularly high during Onam, making disruptions to the premium train service more noticeable.

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