MSRTC to run over 600 extra buses from Pune for Diwali travel between November 4 and 7

The Pune division of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) has planned more than 600 special buses for people from Pune heading to their villages for Diwali. The additional buses will leave from Pimpri-Chinchwad, Swargate and Shivajinagar between November 4 and 7. Travellers are expected to get considerable relief.

Many people who live in Pune for work, studies and business go to their villages for Diwali. Every year, ST buses and trains are heavily crowded during the festival. The number of passengers heading to Marathwada, Vidarbha, Khandesh and western Maharashtra rises sharply in these days. Train reservations also fill up quickly, making it a challenge for passengers to arrange their travel. Seeing this, the MSRTC has decided to run special buses along with its regular services.

Under the plan, more than 600 additional buses will be made available from November 4 to 7. Of these, more than 400 buses are planned to depart from the Pimpri-Chinchwad area. For passengers travelling to western Maharashtra and the Konkan, 200 additional buses will be available from Swargate bus station. Special buses will also run from Shivajinagar bus station.

The buses from Swargate will serve passengers going to Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Solapur, as well as the Konkan. Special buses for Marathwada, Vidarbha and Khandesh will leave from the Pimpri-Chinchwad depot. Earlier, such additional buses used to leave from the Khadki Cantonment area, but because of a shortage of space there, a different arrangement has been made this time. The ST administration said a nearby ground has been rented for parking the buses.

Online booking for the special buses is planned to begin within the next two days. Passengers will be able to book tickets on the MSRTC's official website or mobile app. Tickets can also be bought at official reservation centres. The exact booking date and the bus timetable will be available through official MSRTC notices.

Reservations on regular buses have already begun to fill up. Bookings are full on more than 85 regular buses from the Pune division to Vidarbha, Marathwada and western Maharashtra so far. These include 40 buses to Vidarbha, 35 to Marathwada and 10 to western Maharashtra.

The ST administration has fixed the special buses in view of rising passenger demand. Arrangements are also being made to keep crowds under control at stations and to provide buses to passengers on time. The administration says the additional buses will ease the crush and make travel easier for passengers.