90 more buses to be pressed into service on U-17 final

Kolkata: The state Transport department has decided to increase around 90 more buses to ensure proper transport facilities on the day of the final match of FIFA Under-17 Football World Cup.

The state government had been operating around 600, mostly air-conditioned (AC), buses on the match days since October 8.

Now, on the day of the final, that is on October 28, when the turnout of the spectators will be expectably the highest among all the prior match days, the state Transport department is making extra arrangements to ensure that people do not face any inconvenience in reaching the stadium or returning home after the match.

There will be two matches of the Under-17 World Cup in Swami Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan on Saturday. The first match from 5 pm will be for the third place in which Brazil and Mali will be facing each other while the final between England and Spain will start at 7 pm.

According to a senior official of the state Transport department, there will be a maximum turnout since the last matches of the Under-17 World Cup will be played on Saturday. "So we have decided to increase the number of buses," the official said.

The state Transport department had been operating 600 buses in three layers. Around 100 AC shuttle buses between Ultadanga and Milan Mela to ensure better last minute connectivity to the stadium. At the same time, 200 buses had been operating from points of the city up to Manicktala, Milan Mela, Ultadanga and HUDCO from where the shuttle bus services up to the stadium are available. The state Transport department had also engaged additional buses from North and South Bengal districts.

The official said that around additional 90 buses which will be operating on the day of the final will be distributed in all layers of the service as per the requirement. Like all the other special buses for the World Cup, drivers and conductors in the additional buses will also be clad in blue uniforms sporting caps.