Sagara to Bangalore in Namma NWKRTC/KSRTC
“All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander
are lost.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien
Date of Journey: 29/12/2014
Service: NWKRTC Express (Pancharangi)/KSRTC Airavat.
Website- http://www.ksrtc.in/
Distance: 380kms(appox)
Fare: 462/-
It was not up until Thursday that I decided to book my
return tickets to Bangalore. Since, I was returning from Sagara, I had decided
to try a sleeper service from a famous private operator. However tickets were
costing upwards of Rs 700+ for the 380kms ride back home. Finally, I checked
with Namma KSRTC and found the sleeper buses were booked with last row seats available leaving Shimoga as the
optimal choice to board a direct ride to Bangalore.
With lot of confusion, I booked the 22:00hrs Airavat ride to
Bangalore. Only after the booking went through, I noticed the glitch in the
website and the departure time was mentioned as 23:00hrs. Since I had nothing
important to do once I reach home, I did not bother for the delay in the
departure timings. While I booked a front row seat no 1 ride on a relatively
empty bus, my family had already had their tickets booked on the Talaguppa
express departing from 20:30hrs from Sagara.
The NWKRTC beauty..!!!
 |
| Kumta-Bangalore-Tirupati Pancharangi at Shimoga bus Stand |
After a power packed meal, I headed towards Sagara bus stand.
A relatively empty bus stand greeted me with few buses heading towards Sirsi. I
waited patiently for 20minutes and with patience thinning out; I decided to try
the numerous private operators who were calling out for passengers across the
street to Shimoga. I headed out of the bus stand was about to cross the street when the beauty from Kumta depot
operating Kumta-Bangalore-Tirupati honked her way towards the bus stand. I immediately
made my way back into the bus stand. I boarded the bus and grabbed a seat next
to the conductor and settled down as the bus began to move out of Sagara. The roads
leading out of sagara was empty and within no time, the bus crossed into
Anandapura. I decided to get some sleep and the last thing I remember was the
bus overtaking slow moving vehicles ruthlessly on the highway.
When
I woke up, I had reached Shimoga and the bus made its towards Shimoga
Bus stand. I bid goodbye to the gleaming beauty and now the
never ending wait for my B7R began. While my friend kept me accompanied
on the
phone line, I spotted the Humcha-Bangalore non a/c slepper pull into the
platform. After a few minutes, a battered Airavat pulled into the
platform.
Then, it was time for the big guy, Club Class to make an entry followed
by 2
more sleepers. The relatively empty platform was now buzzing with
passengers
and finally running late by over 45mins, the Mysore-Mumbai Club Class
made an
entrance.
 |
| Humcha-Bangalore Non A/C sleeper |
 |
| Shimoga-Bangalore Airavat Club Class |
Time to head home..!!!
Finally at around 10:30pm, I spotted my bus ready for
boarding. The bus was operated by a DnC (Driver/Conductor). I stashed my
luggage and found the bus was almost full. I checked with the driver and found
the bus was running full with just 3 seats in the last row empty. At around
10:50pm all the passengers had boarded the buses including 2 more passengers
who dashed in for the remaining seats. However, there was a slight hitch. The
guy who is responsible for making an entry for these buses at the bus stand was
missing and every other crew were searching for the same. After a good
15minutes delay, he showed up and with all set and done, we pulled away from
the platform by 11:15pm, a good 15minutes delay. During this time, my family
called up to say that they had just departed from Bhadravati station.
Alco v/s Volvo..!!!
 |
| Shimoga-Bangalore Airavat |
The empty roads leading out of shimoga was inviting enough
for our man to make up for the lost time. The delay in the departure ensured
passengers boarding the bus in Bhadravati call up the driver for the whereabouts
of the bus. We reached Bhadravati in no time and took the remaining 14
passengers who had reserved their tickets. The last seat was also taken and
we departed with a full load towards Bangalore. I had no intentions of missing up
on my sleep and without delay, settled in for a comfortable nap. The suspension
of a Volvo can only be enjoyed if you are sitting in the front or at the rear.
I woke up once near Arsikere to find a battered ‘Volvo’ from Depot-4 which was overtaken
in a flash. I vaguely remember the bus stopping a couple of time and noticed
the driver wipe the glass as fog had made the driving a little less
comforatable.
At around 4:00am, I woke up to find the bus in Dabaspet
toll. Traffic coming from Bangalore was heavy with vehicles lining up from the
opposite end. Around 4:15am, I received a call from my family stating that
their train had reached Bangalore and is about to enter the platform. At this
juncture, we were doing some good speeds and were nearing T.Begur. Luckily,
traffic at the Nelamangala toll was thin. As always we took the Yeswanthpur
expressway and the driver floored the bus towards the first drop off point at
Gorguntepalya. The next stop was at Yeswanthpur followed by Navrang. At this
juncture, I called up my family who had just come outside the railway station
and were waiting for the Radio cab they booked. I was dropped off at
Rajajinagar Entrance at 4:40am.
Good bye 2014..!!!
With that my last bus ride for the year 2014 was complete.
This was one of the fastest ride I had ever traveled covering a distance of
305kms (appox) with little less under 5hours. With the above journey, I completed
a total of 23000kms of Bus journeys across Southern India which also included
numerous rides to Mumbai. Though I have shared most of the reviews here, I will
not be able to forget even a single journey and those innumerable moments I
have enjoyed all along. Hoping to see an equally excited, fun filled 2015.
“If the path be beautiful, let us not ask where it leads.”―
Anatole France
