Buses scarce; Auto drivers fleece commuters

Eluru: The 150-year-old city of Eluru with a population of 3 lakh has no other transport except for autos to travel from the One-Town to Two-Town areas.

Thousands of people travel within the city to be part of their daily grind. Appalling is the fact that the commuters of Eluru do not have a city bus facility to reach places. In the early 1980s, there were private city bus services. Almost 12 private services were run in the city to meet the commuters’ needs. The RTC did not introduce the city service except on GNT Road.  Services have been stopped since the late 1980s in the city. Following the stoppage, the troubles for the commuters have started and grown further since 3 decades.

The RTC passenger bus service, ‘Telugu Velugu’ plies on GNT Road from the New Bus Station Complex in Narasimharaopet to the old bus stand in Powerpeta. The commuters that frequent ASRAM Hospital and other major hospitals in the City have to engage with autos. Barring these roads, the RTC did not function in the I and II towns. Share autos run on the GNT Road from ASRAM Hospital to old bus stand, Railway Station, New Bus complex, Satrampadu and Vatluru areas. 

Any person that need to go to the One-Town from RTC Bus Complex or from old bus stand, has to pay a higher fare, complying to the demands of the auto driver. Their travels cost anywhere between Rs 50 to Rs 200, depending on the distance.

People headed towards ASRAM Hospital are forced to pay Rs 400 during nighttime. The people will have a transport facility at cheaper fares upon introducing city buses.

It is estimated that about 4,000 autos are plying on the roads of Eluru city. As more applications for the registration of autos flooding the Regional Transport Office (RTO), the officials stopped the auto registration in the city as the capacity has exceeded.