Ambari Utsav: 5 Things to Know About Karnataka's New Luxury Sleeper Buses

On Tuesday, the Chief Minister of Karnataka, Basavaraj Bommai, launched 15 new European-style sleeper buses, named "Ambari Utsav" buses. These luxury buses will be operated by Karnataka State Road Transportation (KSRTC) and will be available for passengers starting from February 24. Here are five things to know about these latest luxury buses:

• The Ambari Utsav buses are Volvo 9600 Sleeper Coaches that feature a special Scandinavian design. The windows are designed to provide panoramic views to passengers. Each bus has 40 sleeping berths.

• Each sleeping berth has ample headroom, 2 USB ports, air vents, reading lights, and a mobile holder. The buses also have Knee Impact Protection Technology to enhance driver safety during severe circumstances.

• Initially, the buses will operate on several routes, including Bengaluru-Hyderabad, Bengaluru-Ernakulam, Mangaluru-Pune, Bengaluru-Kundapur, Bengaluru-Thiruvananthapuram, Bengaluru-Thrissur, and Bengaluru-Panaji.

• Passengers will need to pay 10% more than the current Ambari Dream Class segment in KSRTC bus services to travel in these latest Ambari Utsav buses. They can book tickets through the KSRTC website.

• In the first phase, a total of 50 buses will operate on various routes, including those from Bengaluru Central to Ernakulam, Hyderabad, Panaji, Thrissur, and Thiruvananthapuram. The buses from the Mangaluru division will travel to Pune from Mangaluru and to Bengaluru from Kundapura.